Sam opened the door to her room, surprised to find Carter there, waiting for her with rose petals strewn across the bed. She closes the door behind her, leaning against it for a moment to take in the view. She had stayed back late in the ER to cover for Chuny, and Carter had offered to keep an eye on Alex for her. By the time she had gotten home, ten minutes ago, it was so late; she had expected Carter to be asleep already. Not that she was complaining, nothing was more welcoming right then. Slowly walking over to the bed, she sat down beside him.

"Hey," she said quietly, "I thought you'd be well asleep by now."

"Well, I just thought you could do with some cheering up. I know things between you and Alex have been frosty the past three days, and you seemed really stressed earlier. So I waited up for you." Carter replied pulling Sam close to him for a quick hello kiss.

"You did all this just because I looked stressed?" Surprise was written all over her face. It was most definitely a reminder of why she could feel herself falling in love with Carter so quickly.

"Yes," He smiled, "Is that so hard to believe?"

Sam didn't answer, she just smiled. The big brilliant smile that could brighten up a whole room, Carter was sure of it. Her eyes were twinkling with excitement, and he couldn't help but be drawn in by them, as he always was. And he loved knowing that he was the one who made her smile, who made her eyes light up.

"Plus, I thought it'd be romantic."

"It is romantic," Sam whispered moving in closer and kissing him gently.

Carter didn't bother answering, he just kissed her again, this time more passionately. Pulling her as close to him as possible, he wrapped his arms around her.

"No guy has ever been as nice as you've been," she said suddenly when they stopped kissing for a moment in order to catch their breath.

"Really?" Carter replied, he couldn't believe that no guy had ever been nice to her. "Not even Steve?"

Sam winced slightly at the name of her ex-boyfriend who happened to also be the father of her son. Boy did she regret ever sleeping with him. The only good thing he ever did was give her Alex, it was the only reason she could just about tolerate him.

"His idea of doing something nice for me, was not being high while we had sex. And even at that, he didn't do it too often."

"And you dumped him because?" Carter didn't know everything that happened between Sam and Steve, he didn't ask and she didn't tell. He knew she'd tell him when she was ready. But whatever happened, it wasn't pretty. For now he had to cope with the little bits of information that she threw at him.

Sam didn't answer, she never knew how much information to divulge when it came to Steve. How much was too much to tell a guy you've just been seeing for just over a month?

Somehow, Luka popped into her mind. She could easily imagine herself telling him everything. He'd know just what to say to make her feel better. He'd hold her in his arms, and then they'd make love. . . . Sam had to stop herself there. For all she knew he was with Abby right now. Why did he seem to affect her so? No man had ever taken over her mind so completely. And he had to come in just when she was happy with her life. She had a good boyfriend, one who respected her. And Alex seemed really happy. Why did Luka have to come along and screw everything up? Not that it was his fault really, she was the one screwing it up, she was the one being unfaithful in her mind and wanting what she couldn't have.

Then there was Carter, he was right there in front of her, waiting for her to make the next move. She loved him, more than she ever thought possible. After spending so many years promising herself to never get to close to another guy, he managed to force his way into her life. And she was happy about it. She was happy. All she needed to do was ignore the chemistry she felt when she was around Luka. Now, with Carter here with her, alone with her, would be the best time to start. She'd show him just how much he meant to her.

Pushing him back onto the bed, Sam started kissing him, her hands working on unbuttoning his shirt. Once it was open, she began to kiss and nibble her way down his chest, leaving no inch of his skin untouched by her lips. She moved back up and her lips found the pulse on his neck, hearing him groan as she moved her lips over it.

She smiled at him, her hand running down his body until it came in contact with his belt buckle, which she undid in one quick movement and she unzipped him slowly, maintaining eye contact with him. Her hand slipped under the waist of his boxers, and Carter gripped the sheets tightly as she teased him, his breathing coming hard.

"Oh God Sam, I love you!"

"What!" Sam yelled, sitting up straight and staring at him. She was so shocked, she didn't even know what to say, or how to react.

Carter sat up, and their faces were nearly touching. Taking her cheek in his hand, he kissed her gently.

"I said I love you, I know it might seem out of the blue but I've known for a while, I'm in love with you."

"I don't know what to say." Sam whispered.

"Then don't say anything."

This time Carter flipped Sam onto her back and kissed her passionately, she wrapped her arms around him, pulling him closer.

"I love you too," she whispered in his ear.

Carter didn't answer, he just smiled and went on to show her just how much he loved being with her.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Later that night, they lay wrapped up in bed together, both out of breath from their recent exploits in the bedroom. Carter couldn't help but watch her, just take in every inch of her. She was beautiful, she really was. And she loved him. He had to admit, he had been worried. She seemed so distant ever since she started working in the ER. But now he knew, that's all that mattered.

Her breathing was gently, her chest rising and falling ever so slightly with every breath she took. He doubted he'd ever get tired of just watching her. Everything she did, she did it so perfectly. Or so it seemed to him. He loved her smile, it was the biggest, brightest smile around. And when she laughed, or when she was about to kiss him, she had this twinkle in her eyes. So mischievous, he loved it. In short, he loved her.

Kissing her gently on her forehead, he lay his head down to sleep. Her arm was stretched across his waist and he pulled her in closer to him before closing his eyes.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Abby looked at the man asleep beside her. She had slept with Luka, sure they had done it before, but this was the first time they had since everything with the baby and all. Luka had seemed pissed off earlier, he'd had a bad day at work and had come home to start drinking beer. Not really the model example of when to have sex with a man, Abby knew that. But she was so desperate to feel close to him again, that when she arrived at his place, and he started coming on to her, she just ignored the slight whiff of beer off his breath and went with it. It was wrong, she knew that know. She shouldn't have done it, she should have walked away, saved herself all the pain she was now feeling.

In her defence, she didn't know what would happen. How was she to know that when the crucial moment came, he'd shout out another woman's name. Sam. Every since Abby had gone back to work the woman seemed to be everywhere. Luka was obsessed, thought the world of this fantastic nurse. Had even gone as far as looking after her son for an hour the day before, when Sam had been really stuck. He was supposed to meeting up with her, and when she arrived at his apartment to find Alex there also. . . . well it should have been a warning. Instead, Abby had tried forgetting it, putting it off as just Luka being his usual nice, helpful self. She didn't want to believe that he had feelings for this other woman.

Now there was no denying it, it was right there in front of her, slapping her in the face at full speed. Why else would he have screamed her name? Abby was embarrassed, too embarrassed to move, even though she most definitely didn't want to be there when he woke up. She wasn't sure she could ever look him in the eyes again. He screamed her name as they were making love. It hurt, the tears were threatening to fall and Abby couldn't keep denying them. She had every right to cry, didn't she? She had every right to be jealous. Sam was dating Carter, so she knew that Luka wasn't having a physical affair with her, but emotional, he was with Sam more than he was with her.

Getting up slowly so as not to wake Luka; Abby got out of the bed. She quickly found her clothes, proceeding to put them on. She wasn't going to stick around and make an even bigger fool of herself. He didn't love her anymore. Hell, she wasn't even sure he loved her at all really. This whole thing had started because they had accidentally slept together. And they decided to continue to do so just to see what happened, to see where things went. The last time they dated, it hadn't worked out. And Abby guessed that it wasn't going to work out this time either.

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Luka woke up later that night to find himself alone in his bed. Part of him, a huge part of him if he was honest, was relieved to find the bed empty. He couldn't face Abby right then. He wasn't sure things were going to work out between them, and he wasn't sure that he cared. He didn't love her anymore. It was sad, but it was a fact. And he hated that he was going to have to tell her. Especially after what they'd gone through recently.

He's been dreaming of Sam again, as he seemed to do way too often. The dreams were happening ever night now, and they were always the same. She's turn up at his door crying. He'd invite her in, and she'd say that her and Carter had broken up. When he asked why, she'd answer that it was because she was falling in love with him. He'd wipe her tears away and kiss her, softly first, and then more passionate when she reciprocated. He would admit that he loved her too, and carry her off to his bedroom where they would make love.

The dreams made it near impossibly to be around her anymore without the urge to reach out and touch her being too strong. He could imagine what it would be like to have her in his arms, to have her in his bed. And the more he thought about it the crazier he found himself becoming.

Sam had been on his mind the whole time he was with Abby. It wasn't Abby he was making love to, it was Sam. He was sure Abby would never know, but it wasn't fair to her. No matter how angry he might be with her over the abortion, she didn't deserve that. He'd have to tell her. It was one conversation he was not looking forward to.