Disclaimer: If you want to read it that badly, look at the earlier chapters! 

--Same for the spoilers etc.

Author's Note: This seems to happen to me all the time….I have a wonderful idea, write it down, post it, and then loose steam immediately. So, to the people that reviewed the two earlier chapters, I am sorry, and hope to be more prompt in the future.

Chapter Three: The Morning After

"Beep, Beep, Beep," the alarm clock sounded, at exactly six AM.

"Hello Colorado Springs, this is KZ32, here with all you early birds! It is two minutes past the hour, and it is shaping up to be an ugly day out there!" Jack rolled over, and hit the snooze button. But, after years of abuse, it refused to turn off, and the radio announcer's obnoxious voice continued to blast through the room. Sarah moaned, and flopped onto her back, clamping Jack's pillow over her head. Giving up on his current task, Jack whacked the clock with his hand, sending it flying across the room, and leaving him holding his hand in agony.

"Damn, that thing was hard." He muttered under his breath, turning back over, only to find that his pillow was currently in use. He ripped it from her grasp, and was surprised to see Sarah's dark eyes staring back at him.

"Jack, we need to talk." She stated quietly, having realized their current position. She was carefully averting her eyes from his.

"Sarah, I have a hell of a hangover, can we do this later?" She nodded in silent submission, and stumbled out of bed, grabbing her discarded dress, and slipping into it.

"Call me when you've learned how." And with that echoing in Jack's mind, she shut the door, and slipped down the hallway.

"SARAH!" he called, donning his boxers and a worn-in "Ft. Lauderdale, Florida" t-shirt. He reached the front door as it was closing. He stood against it, his head resting on the paneled wood, until a soft knock brought him out of his reverie. He swung the door open to see Sarah standing on his doorstep.

"I, ah, realized that um, this is kind of your house and that you brought me here which means that my car is at my house which means that I can't get…." Jack put a finger on her lips, ending her rambling.

"Shhh. Come back in, and we'll talk." Sarah nodded, and he shut the door behind her.

After the coffee had percolated, and Sarah had had fifteen minutes or so to decide what to tell Jack, the man of her thoughts appeared, cup in hand.

"Penny for 'em." He said.

"Oh, well, I was thinking about last night." At that, his mouth curved into a half-smile.

"Sarah, don't over-analyze, not before the first cup of coffee sets in. I have to deal with Carter spouting off theoretical analogies, mathematical calculations, and her 'thoughts' about the 'gate, all before a decent hour in the morning." At this she laughed.

"Is Carter…" she asked, a quizzical look on her face.

"The blonde woman, the one on my team."

"Oh, that's what I thought. She's an astrophysicist, right?"

"Unfortunately…" Jack grimaced. "She's brilliant, but that has it's down fallings, trust me."

After several more minutes of Jack going through the pros and cons of all three people on his team, the atmosphere was much more relaxed. But, the time to talk about their earlier "adventure" was imminent, but both were reluctant to break the compatibility that had been resurrected.

"Jack, did we use protection?" Sarah asked, out of the blue.

"Umm, I don't think so….shit, we didn't, did we?"

"Yeah, well, that was the first thing that hit me this morning, and, Jack, I had my period two weeks ago."

"Ah, okay, what does that mean again?" He asked, trying to sound contrite.

"It means that I'm ovulating," and at his 'I'm still confused look', she continued, "Which is the time when you are most likely to get pregnant."

"Oh," was all he could get out.

"Yeah, so, I will take a test in a couple of weeks, and I'll let you know."

"Wait, am I not going to see you?"

"That was the other thing." She took a deep breath. "I was distraught about Charlie, and you walked away; you put the military face on. And, truth be told, I don't love you anymore." At his hurt look, she added, "No, those weren't the right words. I still love you, but I'm not IN love with you. You understand the difference?"

He nodded. "I'm glad you were the one to say that. I was wondering how to tell you that last night was a mistake. But, I don't want to run you off! Can't we be friends? And, IF, and I stress the word IF, you are pregnant, we will discuss what do to." Sarah smiled.

"Jack, I need space. In two months, my world got turned around. I need to process. I'll call you when I'm ready." He nodded,

"Well, let's get you home."

She had no sooner walked through the front door, when her dad appeared from the sunroom.

"Sarah, honey, you okay?" He said. She turned around, her eyes brimming with tears.

"Why does he affect me so drastically? Why am I so vulnerable?"

"Shh sweetie, you'll be fine, do you want some tea, ice cream? I saved some of that cake from last night, and I…" She waved him off.

"No, Dad, what I want right now is to go to bed." He nodded, and put a hand on the small of her back, and guided her upstairs. She fell asleep quickly, with her father sitting in the chair, the chair that he made for her when she was born. The security she felt was radiating through the air, and he kissed her forehead, before tucking her blankets in, and leaving.

Jack O'Neill didn't mean to hurt her. He's always been completely oblivious to his affect on her. He mused. But, after her coming crying to daddy twice, I think the man needs a wake-up call. Literally. So, he walked downstairs, and punched in the number of the house that had been Jack's, ever since the divorce.

"Hello?" The voice came over the line.

"Jack, this is Henry."

"Henry, how are you?" Jack asked.

"I'm fine, Sarah, on the other hand, is not faring quite as well." Had he been in the same room as Jack, he would have seen the younger man cringe.

"Yeah, I would classify last night as a 4, maybe Category 5 disaster." Henry chuckled. The man had always had a talent for making him laugh.

"Just remember Jack, she'll come around. But, let her. I would rather that you not come 'round for a while. Let her recuperate on her own."

"I will." Jack promised.

"Bye Jack."

"Take care, Henry. And give Sarah my best."

"nnnnnnnnnnnnn," The line went dead. And when Jack O'Neill made a promise, he kept it.

Over the next years, he and Henry kept in close touch. Jack had taken the old man into his confidence, but had never made another move towards Sarah. He and Sarah finally talked several months after the one-night-of-hell, as Jack had taken to calling it, and after they were sure of no unwanted pregnancies. Their relationship was rockier than it had been after the botched mission to the crystal world, simply because of the "one-night-of-hell".

But, one night, as Jack walked into his house, having just returned from a particularly bad planet, the phone rang.

"O'Neill." He barked into his phone.

"Finally, thank you God, Jack, it's Henry."

"Henry," his demeanor changed instantly, "How's it going?"

"Ah, fine, look, I need some help."

"Sure, what can I do for…"

"Great, thanks, oy vey, Sarah's getting married in less than 48 hours, and, NO YOU ARE NOT WEARING THAT JAMIE!!"

"Wait, Sarah's getting married? Since when?"

"Ah, you remember Kennedy? Him." Henry said, sounding frazzled.

"Why didn't you tell me?" Jack yelled, slightly ticked at one of his closer friends.

"Jack, you've been MIA for the last ten weeks, what did you want me to do?" Jack had to concede. SG-1 had been captured, tortured: the usual, and after convincing Janet that two extra weeks in the infirmary would do nothing for him, had come home.

"Okay; what can I do for you?"

"Come over; we need help with the, well, everything. Just come over, alright!?!" Jack agreed, and was soon on his way to his ex-wife's second marriage.

When he arrived, he was immediately thrown into work, not stopping until the next morning, when he rushed home, grabbed his dress blues, and stopped for the LARGE cup of coffee at the local coffee shop, before picking Sam's bike up, and picking up his date. And, surprisingly, at 6:30 that evening, Sarah was walking down the aisle on Henry's arm. He smiled at her as she passed, and nodded. She seemed to take that as the last goodbye, and turned her attention back to her fiancée. Kennedy had seen Jack, and recognized him from old family pictures, and the fact that the ex-husband was at his wedding had him slightly nervous. But, when the pastor announced, "You may kiss the bride," Kennedy was completely focused. Jack joined in throwing rice at the newlyweds, and focused for the first time solely on his date. She had her nicest clothes on, but like Jack, was incredibly uncomfortable.

"Hey, what do you say we head out after I say hi?" She nodded her assent, and held Jack's hand tightly as he kissed Sarah, and gave Kennedy a nod.

"You're a lucky one." Jack commented, as he passed Kennedy. Sarah smiled, and Kennedy nodded his head. "Don't I know it! I don't know what I did to deserve her, but I plan on keeping her around for a while."

Jack smiled, and turned back to Cassie.

"Where do you want to go kiddo? And don't you dare say Vortex, we got in trouble with the doc last time we did that."

"But, Uncle Jack…." Cassie whined.

"Well, let me think about it. No." He said, "Besides, I already decided. We're meeting Carter and Daniel at your house. And Carter might have a fit if her baby isn't back by nine." Cassie grinned knowingly.

"Uncle Jack, why is Aunt Sam so protective of her motorcycle? Besides, we don't even get to ride it. What fun is that?"

"I don't know Cass, but let's check the straps once more, and then we'll blow this Popsicle stand." Cassie giggled, and hopped into the cab of the truck as Jack checked the ropes securing the Indian in the bed of his Ford. Once he was satisfied, he hopped in alongside Cassie, who was riding shotgun, and started the motor with a roar. He backed out of the church parking lot, and put his blinker on. He had finished one chapter in his life. And, with his team, and family by his side, he was ready to start the next book in his life.

FIN

a/n: Alright, how many of you thought that Sam was his date to the wedding? C'mon, 'fess up! And please, review!!

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