CHAPTER 6

Jack hadn't seen Dr. Carter since their altercation. He had a feeling she was making herself scarce. He even stopped by her lab a few times, but she was never there. That morning he made his way to the infirmary for a follow up on his injuries.

"Your wound seems to be healing well. I suspect I'll be able to clear you for full duty in a week or so."

"Great, thanks Doc."

"Is there something else I can do for you, Colonel?" Janet asked when Jack didn't move from the bed. He was usually quick to leave the infirmary as soon as he could.

"Um, yeah, have you seen Dr. Carter around?"

"No, sir. Not today. Have you tried her lab?"

"Yeah, I've stopped by but she wasn't there. If you talk to her, can you tell her I'm looking for her? I, um, want to apologize for the other day."

"Colonel, wait," said Janet as he walked passed her and turned around. "Sam's been coming in at night to work and visit Captain Wong for the past week or so."

He nodded at her in understanding. She was avoiding him. Not that he blamed her.

"But...I know she has a meeting with General Hammond and Dr. Langford today. So she should be here this afternoon."

"Thanks," he said as he turned to leave again. "Hey Janet, let me ask you a question. If you were wanting to extend an olive branch to someone, you got any ideas on what that might look like?"

"Well, an apology is a great start, sir. But I've found that most people just want to know that they're welcomed and respected."

"What about a fruit basket?"

"Sir, Sam's really great. You should try to get to know her and you'll see. Hey, how about you invite her to your Labor Day cookout? Cassie's been dying to meet her."

Ugh, sneaky Doc Fraiser. Bringing Cassie into this because she knows I can't say no. "I'll think about it. Thanks again Doc!"

Sam arrived to the base and went straight to her lab. She wasn't hiding per se, but she would prefer if she didn't have to run into the colonel. She knew this wasn't sustainable. They'd have to talk about it sooner or later because at some point they would be working together again. But for now she chose to continue to play this game of how long could she avoid him. She started to gather together some papers to prepare for her meetings. Going through her mental checklist, she didn't notice Jack standing in her doorway until he cleared his throat and knocked. Guess the game is over. She thought when she looked up and saw him standing there with his hands in the pockets of his blue BDUs only making brief eye contact before shifting his eyes somewhere else around the room.

"Colonel, to what do I owe the pleasure?"

"May I?" he replied as he gestured for permission to enter to which Sam nodded. She couldn't seem to find her voice. "I hear you've been working late at night recently. I haven't seen you around."

"Uh, yes. There's been a few things around here that seem best to work on at night." Sam winced at the excuse that didn't really make any sense.

"Yes, I bet. It's probably a lot quieter and certain people that bother you are probably not here."

"I wasn't doing it to avoid you or anything," she blurted out quickly.

"I was talking about Felger and Lee," he replied with a smirk.

Sam face crunched up as she fought between anger and amusement. Damnit, why does he make me want to laugh and wring his neck at the same time?

"Is there something I can do for you, Colonel O'Neill?"

"Uh, you can call me Jack...if you want. I just came by to uh, apologize. For the other day in the infirmary. I was upset and worried about Wong but that's no excuse. I was out of line. I didn't mean what I said and I don't blame you for what happened to Wong."

Sam was taken off guard. She wasn't expecting him to apologize much less take ownership of his actions.

"I appreciate the apology, Colonel...Jack. And I'm sorry too. For misleading you." She eyed him closely and saw a tiny flinch. "For deceiving you. I can tell that most, if not all, of the people on this base implicitly trust you with their lives to make tough decisions, the type that could directly cost people their lives. I know the guys definitely do. I can't even begin to imagine what it's like to make those decisions but I'm sure they're hard enough without someone intentionally withholding information from you."

"Yes, well it doesn't make it easier."

"I didn't see how much my actions could affect. You trust everyone around you to help give you the facts you need to make the best decisions you can. I didn't understand that enough before, but I do now and it won't happen again."

Jack locked eyes with her. Studying them, he smiled once he determined that she meant what she said.

"Apology accepted. So, we're good?"

"Yes, we're good."

"Great. Maybe I'll see you around when you start working during the daytime again."

Sam returned his smile and nodded in agreement. Jack let out a big exhale as he turned on his heels to leave. He had one foot out the door when he stopped and turned back around.

"Hey so I'm having a few people over at my place on Labor Day. Nothing big. Just grilling out with some drinks and friends. I was wondering if you'd want to come?"

"Uh, yeah I'd love to."

"Great," he said as he turned to leave once again. "Oh and make sure you wear all white. Something you don't mind getting dirty."

Her brow furrowed as she tried to analyze his words. Seeing the wheels turning in her head, he flashed her another quick smile that made her stomach do a flip as her mind flashed back to his shirtless body in the infirmary. She had to swallow hard to keep herself from melting at his charm that accompanied his good looks.

Sam pulled up to Jack's house and parked by the mailbox. She could see smoke rising from the backyard as she walked up the driveway carrying a bottle of wine. She knocked on the front door, but there was no answer. After her third attempt, she was about to head around to the back when the door opened. There stood a little girl about three and a half feet tall in a white jumper with a big smile on her face.

"Hi!"

"Uh, hi."

"C'mon in! Uncle Jack doesn't lock his door. Are you my new aunt?"

As shy as she was when SG-1 had first found her, there was no stranger Cassie didn't know now and she gravitated towards Sam. Before she knew it, Sam had two small arms wrapped around her waist.

"You must be Cassie," she said as she returned the embrace. "I'm Sam."

"Yup! Hi Sam!"

"Yo Cass. What's taking you so long?" Jack shouted as he walked through the doors from the deck. "Carter! You made it!"

"Hi Jack. Thanks again for inviting me. I brought wine."

"Excellent!"

"Uh, where's everyone else?"

"Daniel and Teal'c are out getting some supplies. The rest are out back," he said taking the bottle of wine from her. "I see you wore white."

He flashed a mischievous grin as he eyed her up and down. As advised, she was wearing all white, opting for shorts and a polo. She noticed that he was wearing something similar. They looked like they were getting ready to play at Wimbledon. Outside, Sam saw George, Catherine, Michael, and Janet all casually conversing on the deck.

"Janet, look who your daughter found while getting the ketchup."

"Sam! You made it! I see you met Cassie," Janet exclaimed as she looked at her daughter clinging to her new friend. Sam hadn't even noticed that Cassie was still holding her hand.

"Yup! She's my new best friend!"

"Hey, I thought I was your best friend," complained Jack as he fake pouted.

"You're my old best friend. Sam's my new one!"

"Ouch, that hurts."

"C'mon Sam, I want to show you my puppy."

"Hey, remember who got you that puppy!" Jack shouted after them but Cassie wasn't listening because she was telling Sam all about Bruno.

"You're still my favorite, Colonel," teased Wong.

"Yeah, for now..." Jack grumbled as he went back to manning the grill. Yup, there was something about Samantha Carter that made her kind of...loveable. Watching her entertain his god daughter, he could see why everyone on base gravitated to her. He felt a tinge of guilt that he had misread her and given her a cold shoulder in the beginning. Twenty minutes later, Daniel and Teal'c had returned while Cassie was still monopolizing Sam.

"Cassie, why don't you give Sam a little break?"

"But mom..."

"Cassandra..." Janet said more sternly.

"Hey kiddo, I forgot the mustard inside too. Can you go grab that for me?"

"Fine," Cassie huffed as she reluctantly stomped back to the house.

"She was fine, Janet. Really, I don't mind," said Sam as she joined the others on the deck.

"I know. I'm just trying to teach her some boundaries. It's difficult when you're the center of attention whenever these guys get together," Janet responded as she shot a glare at the men of SG-1 who gave back guilty looks.

"Got the mustard!" announced Cassie as she exited the house holding up a yellow bottle. As she made her way across the deck, she tripped over her own foot and dropped the bottle on ground. "Shit!"

"Cassandra! Where on earth did you learn that word?!"

"Um..." She paused to look around at the men of SG-1 for some guidance on how to answer.

"Oh look, the food's ready. Let's eat!"

The menu consisted of burgers and hotdogs with a side of pleasant conversation. The mood was laid back and comfortable. Cassie updated everyone on what she was learning in school and the drama with her best friend, Allison. SG-1 reminisced about memorable missions and divulged details to Sam that didn't make it in the missions reports. After they had all had time for their food to settle, Cassie looked up at Jack while sitting on his lap.

"Jack, is it time yet?"

"Oh, I'm sorry Cass, but we didn't get any of the stuff this year."

"What?! I don't believe you. You told Sam that Daniel and T were out getting supplies."

"I did, didn't I. Nothing gets by you huh," he said as Cassie shook her head emphatically with a smile. "Alright, but you got to help set up this time ok? Why don't you go with Danny and T to grab the stuff."

Cassandra excitedly jumped down from Jack's lap and ran ahead with the two guys towards the garage.

"What's going on?" inquired Sam curiously.

"Tradition," Jack answered with the same mischievous grin as earlier.

"Tradition?"

"You'll see," replied Jack as he wagged his eyebrows up and down.

"Oh Jack, stop teasing the poor woman and just tell her."

"She's a smart one Catherine. She'll figure it out. I hope you're not too attached to that polo."

He gave a quick wink at Sam as he turned to go into the yard. Is he flirting with me? She watched as he met up with Daniel and Teal'c who were carrying two large boxes. Teal'c also had a bag over his shoulder and Cassie was carrying a smaller box. Sam couldn't tell what it was from the deck. Jack then disappeared around the side of the house and reemerged with a hose.

"I'm still not sure what's going on. Exactly what kind of tradition is this?"

"Michael, would you like to explain? It is after all your fault we have this tradition."

"Hey now, I've seen you play this game. You like this tradition," he responded to Janet before turning back to Sam.

"Game?"

"When my parents first came here, they didn't really understand the whole thing about not wearing white after Labor Day. They thought it was like some kind of American tradition that meant you had to wear white on Labor Day because it was your last chance. So, every single year, my whole family would wear all white. I didn't know how weird that was until I met these people. We had a cook out and they gave me a hard time about my outfit all day. Towards the end of the night, Daniel had had a couple of beers when he went to get Janet a glass of wine. Red wine. You can see where I'm going with this right?"

"Oh no, he didn't." Sam tried to stifle her laugh as she tried to guess what happened next.

"It's exactly what you're thinking. Daniel tripped over nothing and spilled the entire glass all over Michael and his white outfit," Janet interjected.

"So obviously, I had to get him back. But...I missed and hit Teal'c right in the face with some blue Gatorade. Jack laughed and chaos ensued. Teal'c ended up pouring a bucket of water over Jack's head."

"Then of course, as silly boys do, they made a game out of it the following year."

When they looked back, Teal'c was blowing up large inflatable structures and setting them up around the yard. Cassie was now wielding a huge water gun almost as big as she was that required two hands to operate and running around Jack and Daniel who were filling up water balloons.

"She asked if we should meet up."

"Who?" Daniel asked while tying up water balloons that Jack had handed him until the realization hit. "Ohhhh...she did? What did you say?!"

"I said eventually."

"Eventually?" Daniel repeated slowly annunciating each syllable as he gave him a bewildered look. "Could you have at least tried to sound a little more enthusiastic?"

"What do you expect from me Daniel?!"

"I'm just saying that she's going to think you're full of it."

"Full of what?" chimed in Cassie who they hadn't realized was listening.

"Oh, nothing Cass," replied Daniel as he handed her a water balloon to keep distract her.

"So I kind of freaked out. She seemed ok though."

"Well how is she supposed to respond to that? She was probably just saving face."

"Damnit Daniel!" Jack looked down at Cassie. "Don't repeat that."

"Jack, you're just taking the relationship to the next level. It's not like you have to go and marry her."

"That's the thing, Daniel. I might just be crazy enough to do that...eventually. And now that it comes down to it, I'm not so sure. I mean, we're in the middle of a war. Every time we step through that gate, we take a calculated risk that we won't come back. I've already put one family through that before. I'm not so sure if I can do it again."

"I still think you should give it a chance. You'll regret it if you don't."

"I know, I know. I just needed some time to think. I'll fix it."

"On another note, I'm glad to see you and Sam getting along," Daniel said with a wag of his eyebrows. Jack sprayed him with the hose for what he was implying.

As they filled up all the water guns, Jack then opened the smaller box and pulled out large piece of plastic that was folded up.

"You guys got a slip and slide this year?!" yelled Mike from the deck when Jack unfolded it. "That's so not fair. You know I can't participate!"

"Oh sure you can! We won't tell your doctor!" Daniel shouted back as Janet shot him a dirty look.

Sam continued to watch as they finished setting everything up. Jack was trying to hook up the slip and slide when Cassie threw a water balloon at him hitting him directly in the back. He retaliated by chasing her around with the hose until the squealing girl took cover behind Teal'c. A smile crept over Sam's face as she fondly watched him interact with the young girl. It was subtle, but didn't go unnoticed by Janet who joined her at the railing.

"There's something attractive about a man who's good with kids, am I right?" Janet said as she nodded in Jack's direction.

Sam blushed. "It's definitely different from the hard nosed colonel I'm used to seeing. He's great with Cassie."

"Yeah, he really is. She adores him."

"He'd make a great father. Does he have any kids? I thought I saw pictures of him with a young boy inside."

Janet frowned and took a deep breath. "He had a son, Charlie. He shot himself with Jack's service weapon. Just before the trip to Abydos."

"Oh that's awful!"

"He took the assignment to go through the Stargate because he thought he wouldn't come back."

"I couldn't even begin to imagine."

Sam turned her gaze back to Jack and Cassie imagining that was what he was like all the time before he lost his son. That was something that wasn't in his file she had read. She admitted to herself again that she had misjudged him. Thinking back to the scars that she had seen in the infirmary, Sam now wondered how many scars he had that weren't visible. The more she found out about him, the more she understood what made Jack O'Neill so well liked and respected.

"Alrighty campers, we're all set!" Jack yelled signaling for the others to come join them from the deck.

By the time they were done, Jack's backyard had been transformed into what looked like a paintball course with inflatable barriers set up all around and a chair at each end of the yard.

"Ok, you all know the rules."

"Uh, actually I don't."

"Oh right. Sorry about that Carter. It's simple. First we'll split into two teams. Cassie, you choose first."

"I choose Sam and Teal'c!"

"We're supposed to alternate picks."

"I choose Teal'c and Sam!"

"That's not alternating—ok never mind, looks like the doc and space monkey are with me."

"And we want to be blue!"

"And I guess that means we want to be red."

This little girl really does have him wrapped around her finger. Sam thought as Jack started handing out water guns.

"Alright, next our fearless leaders will each choose a side."

Sam watched as Hammond and Catherine each headed in opposite direction towards the edges of the yard.

"There is just one objective, to drench the other team's leader with a water balloon."

"So are there any rules?"

"Rules? What are rules?"

"Each team has ten water balloons per round. One hit from a balloon and you're out for the round. A round ends when either General Hammond or Catherine are hit," explained Daniel.

"We play best of five. First team to win three rounds wins the game."

"And the water guns are for...?"

"Those are just for fun," replied Jack with a big grin on his face now.

The two teams retreated back to their respective sides. Cassie, Teal'c and Sam chose General Hammond's side leaving the others to join Catherine. Each side quickly discussed their strategy. Teal'c concluded that since Sam had never participated before, it made her a wild card. Their first strategy was to send Teal'c and Cassie on the offensive while Sam defended.

"Alright, ready or not, take your positions!" Michael yelled from the deck. "Ok, and begin!"

After Michael gave the signal, the two teams enacted their plans. Daniel and Janet moved forward towards General Hammond. Neither of them were very stealthy, and Sam was able to hear their approach. They tried to trap her by coming in from both sides, but they didn't coordinate well enough. Sam was able to easily dodge Daniel first and then Janet. She distracted them by shooting her water gun as she threw two water balloons at them. Janet dodged the one thrown at her and retreated behind one of the barriers. However, Sam hit Daniel on the shoulder as it exploded on contact leaving a blue blotch on his shirt.

"Nice hit, Sam!" applauded Daniel and his moved out of the course.

Sam was surprised to discover that both the water guns and balloons were filled with colored water. These people are nuts. She was amazed at the lengths they went for a simple game. All of a sudden, she felt a thump and water dripping down her leg. With her momentary lapse of concentration, Sam didn't notice that Janet had come out from hiding and crept to her right hitting her on the leg.

"Gotcha!"

As Janet turned to go soak the General, there was a loud cheer and woo hoo from the other end. Cassie came running back over to Sam and Janet.

"I got her, mommy! I hit Catherine with the water balloon!"

"Good job, sweetie!" replied Janet giving her a quick peck on the head. "But you two are going down next round."

Sure enough, Janet's prediction came true. While Sam and them opted for the same strategy, Daniel and Jack switched places for their team. Jack and Janet proved to have better team chemistry and moved swiftly timing it perfectly to hit Sam and subsequently Hammond.

"Better watch your six next time, Carter."

Oh, it is so on. Also, when did he start calling me Carter?

The teams split the next two rounds as well. After the fourth round, they took a break to strategize one last time. Up to this point, the vibe of the game had been completely light and fun with friendly banter and trash talking. However, with the teams now tied, there was definitely a more serious tone amongst all of them. Apparently Sam was not the only overly competitive one around here.

They were all wet and covered in color from being hit in one way or the other. Teal'c was the only one who had yet to be hit by a balloon, although he had been sprayed with the water guns plenty of times. Cassie's small body as well as her willingness to roll on the ground allowed her to be very elusive. She seemed to have more grass stains than water stains. Daniel and Janet were the most soaked. On several occasions, they bickered lightly about which strategy was working best which ended with them throwing their own water balloons at each other. As for Jack, he seemed to forget the one objective of the game and was solely focused on targeting Sam which meant she had spent most of the last two rounds dodging him. So far, she had been successful.

"Samantha Carter, I believe our best strategy would be for you and Cassandra to be on the offensive, while I defended."

"I'm not so sure about that Teal'c. The only rounds we've won have been with you and Cassie on offense."

"O'Neill seems to have taken great interest in you. I believe we should use that to our advantage."

"What are you suggesting?"

"A distraction."

Sam stared back at Teal'c with one eyebrow raised doing her best impression of him. She was impressed at the Jaffa's observations and strategy. Although she wasn't particularly fond of the idea of being the bait, her competitiveness outweighed any objection she had.

"Ok, final round. Winner takes all!" shouted Michael. "And...go!"

Teal'c's strategy worked out just as predicted. Jack and Janet charged towards the other side flanking from opposite ends. Teal'c caught sight of O'Neill and signaled Sam in that direction while Cassie went up the middle to avoid her mom.

Sam cautiously weaved her way between a couple of barriers, stopping to hide for a moment behind each one before proceeding. She started to feel nervous. She had to be close to him at this point. She peeked her head around the current barrier and barely saw the stream of water headed towards her before she ducked back down quickly hearing the sound of the spray hitting the plastic. She moved swiftly over to the next barrier just as a water balloon came soaring from above and hit exactly where she had been crouching. Whew, that was close. The next time she peered around the barrier, she could see him. She was about to make her move to pull him even further away when they heard a shout.

"Daniel! Colonel! I've been hit. I'm out!"

"Jack! Go!"

The calling of his name was enough of a distraction as he looked back towards Daniel. Sam saw her opening and took it. She flung a water balloon at Jack hitting him square in the chest. Stunned at first, he turned back towards Sam who just stood there with a smug grin on her face.

"I'm out too Daniel!" he shouted back as his shocked look turned into an amused smile.

"Maybe you should watch your front as much as you're concerned with my six," she said as she slowly walked past him gloating just a little.

"Noted," he replied as he playfully shot her with his water gun and she couldn't help but laugh as she shot him back.

Before Daniel could even get halfway across the yard, Cassie managed to hit Catherine once again sealing the victory.

"That was...interesting. A lot of fun, but interesting. What do we do with all the left over balloons?" Sam asked and immediately regretted it. She knew the answer, but it was too late. She felt the thud and splash of a water balloon as Jack returned the favor.

"Free for all!" yelled Cassie.

After chasing each other around for a few minutes, they all realized Michael was way too clean and all ganged up on him. Once the balloons were gone, they continued to play around the backyard with the water guns and slip and slide. Much to Janet's chagrin, they even managed to make a sled-like contraption for Michael to sit on as they slung him across. Before they knew it, the sun was starting to set.

"Cassie, why don't you go ahead and get changed inside. We have to leave soon."

"Awww...ok," she relented after seeing the look on her mother's face.

"Please tell me it gets better."

"Just wait until she's a teenager," replied Hammond with a chuckle.

While cleaning up the yard, the group chatted and teased each other about the afternoon they just had and even made plans for another get together.

"Anyone's welcomed to stay for a couple of drinks after we finish up here," offered Jack.

"Cassie has school tomorrow so we have to head out."

"I'd love to stay, but I should be getting back. There's a briefing at 0700 tomorrow."

"I have the same briefing. Thanks as always for having us Jack."

"Of course. Thanks for coming," he replied. He didn't need to ask the guys because he knew they'd be staying, which left..."Carter? You in?"

"Yeah I could use another drink."

"Excellent. I'll be right back."

Jack entered the house and went straight to the kitchen to grab a few beers from the fridge. When he was walking back out, he noticed Cassie playing with an old flip phone.

"What do you have there Cass? Whose phone is that?"

"It's mine?" answered Cassie tentatively as she shut the phone closed and hid it behind her back.

"Don't lie to me. I know your mom won't let you have a cell phone yet."

"It's Sam's."

"Cassie, you shouldn't be taking things—"

"But she has two! I figured she'd let me have this old one. It doesn't even have any games or anything on it."

Jack paused. That was odd. Why would Sam have two phones? Including one that looked awfully like a burner phone.

"Let me see that will ya?"

Cassie reluctantly handed Jack the phone. He flipped it open to see a message on the screen.

"Did you secure the package?"

Curious and confused, he went back and scrolled through some more messages.

"Where's the device?"
"Here's the address for the drop."
"Do they suspect anything?"
"We need to talk. Come alone."

"You said this was Sam's?" asked Jack as Cassie nodded. "How do you know?"

"It was in her purse with her other phone. I'm sorry, Jack. Please don't tell my mom."

"It's ok, Cassie. I won't. Here go put it back where you found it and this will be our little secret, ok?"

Cassie nodded and did as she was told. Jack's mind was racing, and that bad gut feeling he had before started creeping back. Based off these texts, either she was playing them all or she was mixed up in something bad, maybe even dangerous. Whichever it was could only mean trouble. Ok, time to find out what secrets you're hiding. Jack put on a forced smile and joined the others back outside.