Sam pulled the blanket tighter around her shoulders. At the SGC she had only been wearing her standard issue black long sleeved base layer and green cargos. Despite it's depths within the mountain, the SGC was kept at an ambient temperature of about 70 degrees F which meant layering up wasn't necessary. This unexpected offsite trip meant she was starting to feel the cool chill of the night.

'Here' Jack had noticed, he stretched his arm out inviting her to lean into him.

Sam unfurled the blanket and repositioned it so they were both covered. She leaned her head in and rested it on his shoulder, the palm of her hand flat against his chest. She could feel his heart beating... pounding underneath her fingertips.

'Ah, this brings back memories of the glacier in Antarctica' Jack grinned 'Well, without the broken bones and near death with no chance of escape scenario'.

'That was the first time i had ever given up' Sam replied quietly 'You were in a bad way, i thought we were going to die there'

Jack glanced down at Sam, her blue eyes swimming with tears that threatened to fall. 'We got out' he whispered. She closed her eyes as if remembering the rescue and the weeks of recovery afterwards - it had taken Jack a long time to heal and rehabilitate before they were able to go out on missions through the Stargate again.

'I think I knew then, maybe earlier' She said slowly, giving Jack time to catch up with her racing mind.

'Knew?' Jack raised his eyebrows

'Yes' she smiled gently 'that I was in love with you... am in love with you, and why now I understand that it is the reason why I have never been able to move on or hold down a relationship, or get a life' She emphasised the last three words knowing it would make Jack laugh aloud. It did.

It was ironic that in so many of the alternate universes Sam and Jack were together or married. Sam still remembered the first time they had been made aware of the existence of the quantum mirror; Daniel's experience, though the world that he described showed that even then in those early years Jack and Sam had gravitated towards one another... only here in their reality it seemed, had they held out for so long.

Her eyes skated across his face - moving her chin upwards she gently and very slowly planted a kiss on his lips. Closing her eyes she lifted her free hand to his cheek and welcomed his returning kiss, years of pent up desire finally spilled over. Jack returned Sam's kiss fervently, savouring the love that reverberated between them.

Their kiss had marked a cliff edge in their reality, they were way past the thin red line of the Air Force regulations and Sam knew she had crossed a personal line too.

'What am i doing? She breathed 'Pete is wonderful, he doesn't deserve this' She was ashamed of herself. She was in the arms of another man, her commanding officer no less. 'I need to call Pete'

'It's late you know' Jack replied gently.

'I don't think this can wait, Jack' She gazed at him for a moment not really believing where they were.

Reluctantly Sam stood and moved away from Jack, pulling her phone out of her pocket she wandered inside the cabin to have a conversation with Pete that she knew couldn't wait a moment longer.

Sam selected his number from the contacts list and waited as it began to ring.

A groggy voice answered 'Sam!? It's gone 1am, is everything okay?'

'Pete, hi...'

Jack rolled the blanket into a makeshift pillow and laid flat on the deck looking up at the stars, he knew the conversation Sam was having with Pete was incredibly painful for her. It occurred to him that had he not visited Sam's lab, they wouldn't be here and that conversation probably wouldn't be happening... Pete would still have Sam.

Selfishly he knew that something had changed between them in recent weeks, Pete's proposal forced Sam to confront the feelings she had for him. He'd noticed the lingering looks grow more frequent between them, her eyes betrayed her which prompted his visit to her lab.

It had been 8 years since Sam; a bright, young 29 year old officer had marched into the briefing room, giving him, Kowalski and Ferretti a good run for their money. He knew then she was going to change the course of his life, he just never anticipated by how much. Hell, he had only ever dreamed that Samantha Carter would want him too.

It was more than thirty minutes before Sam re-emerged from the cabin. She looked exhausted, her shoulders slumped and her blue eyes lowered to the floor.

Jack stood and enveloped her in his arms, she tucked her head under his chin and held on for dear life. 'It's over' she said into Jacks chest.

Jack didn't reply, just led her back to the bench and helped her curl into his arms. They sat in comfortable silence for a while. Sam felt the warmth of Jack's body against hers, they had never been so close for such a prolonged period of time. It wasn't lost on Sam that the feeling of being close to Jack felt incredibly natural, like coming home.

'Are you okay' Jack asked after a while

'Yes, i'm relieved to be honest' She replied 'I'm sorry, Jack'

'Sorry!' Jack pulled back startled 'Why are you apologising?'

'For ever asking you to keep it in the room' She replied 'i thought it was the right thing to do at the time, and i know what you said during the testing but...'

Jack cut her off

'Sam, i... it's you, it's always been you. You sparked my soul the first day i met you, and i know i was hard on you in those early days but you were exceptional. The best soldier i have ever served with, strong, compassionate and unbelievably smart' Jacks eyes were fixed on Sam's 'I honestly don't know how a brain as big as yours fits into your head' he grinned.

Sam laughed.

'All i know is that when i wake in the morning, my first thoughts are of you. When you're off-world without me i am terrified that something will happen and i'm not there with you anymore' Jack confessed 'Just ask Walter, i'm insufferable when you're away'

Sam smiled, she had heard murmurings from the control room techs that Jack was particularly bad tempered when she and SG-1 were off-world, she knew he worried for them.

'I didn't feel this way about Sara' Jack gazed at Sam, watching her carefully as he spoke 'I love you Sam, i think i always have deep down'

Jack stood and pulled Sam to her feet, even in her military issue fatigues she was beautiful, he took her in his arms and kissed her - the way he had during whilst looping with Teal'c, the way he had kisses alternate universe Samantha and the way he intended to kiss her every day for the rest of his life.

For the few remaining hours of their time at the cabin, Jack and Sam found each other. Jack led Sam into the cabin's main bedroom and gently made love to her in the darkness.

'What now?' Sam asked later.

'I have a phone call to make' Jack grinned. 'Time to call in those favours'