#

"Where are we going?" Sam asked as soon as he hung up, getting up from the chair and resigning herself to another night off stolen by her work at the SGC.

"Peterson." He glanced at her, gaze lingering. "You still have a carry on in your car?"

She did and told him so. Just as she reminded him her car was at her house as they made their way towards the ladder.

"We'll swing by and pick it up. You can change when we get there." He motioned for her to go down first.

Sam stopped halfway down the ladder, looking up to find him looking down at her. "Are you going to tell me why we're going to Peterson?"

He grimaced, the earlier softness in his eyes disappearing almost entirely. "Our good buddies the Tok'ra sent a message to the SGC. We're to meet one of their operatives at Peterson."

"Did they say who?" She resumed her descent, her mind instantly going to her father. It'd been a long time since she'd seen him, though, and the last communication she'd had from him was that he and Selmac were being sent on a covert mission and weren't expected back for quite some time.

"Nope." He popped the p, waiting until she'd made it to the bottom before following. He turned from the ladder to see her slipping on her heels, hiding those pink painted toenails from view. "All we know is they have a ship, and they're waiting on us there."

"Daniel and Teal'c?" Sam asked, straightening up.

"They're meeting us there."

He knew he should walk away, that he should grab his keys and lead the way out of the house and back to his truck. He knew that, but still he took a step closer to her instead. Sam froze at his approach. She watched his gaze drop to her lips and felt her breath catch when he lifted a hand to her face.

His touch was absurdly gentle, almost reverent. His fingertips trailed over her cheek to cup her face, just brushing the blond strands of hair she'd so painstakingly arranged for her would-be date.

This was better, she thought, as she felt her nerve endings react to the simple touch. She felt warm and wanton. Wanted. And if he could make her heart race so much with such a small gesture, cause heat to spread through her like wildfire by just gazing at her with that expression in his dark eyes...

Her eyes slid shut as he closed the gap between them. She tilted his head under the gentle instruction of his hand and braced herself.

The kiss was soft, so soft.

Almost innocent, it was a sweet brush of lips. Tentative, testing.

As he drew back just a little, she felt his breath on her face and automatically, instinctively chased his lips with hers.

His hand tightened in his hair and the pressure increased, a low groan escaping him as he parted her lips with his tongue. She felt the groan vibrate through his chest, felt it in her own. When he wrapped his other hand over her hip and pulled her body closer to his, she lifted her arms to clutch at his shoulders.

Time was against them but seemed to slow as they kissed, lost in a moment that was long overdue.

She wanted to memorise the taste of him, the feel of his hard body surrounding hers, the sound he made when she nipped his bottom lip with her teeth or raked her nails lightly against the sensitive skin of his neck.

She wanted to never stop kissing him, to never know what it was like to not have him pressed so intimately against her as she took a step back, drawing him with her, letting the wall behind her and his arm around her waist support her as her knees went weak.

But she knew they couldn't stay in their bubble for long, reality intruding on her thoughts just as he slipped a thigh between her legs.

"We have to go," she breathed, tearing his lips free.

"I know." He continued to hold her for too short a time before letting go and backing away. His eyes were molten brown, his grin tinged with wonder and smug satisfaction at whatever he saw on her face. "To be continued?"

"You can count on it," she returned, the tingle in her lips making her smile.

He offered her his hand, which she took with a shy smile, and together, they made their way out of the house.

#

They made short work of picking up her overnight bag and throwing on the back seat with his. Sam wished she had time to get changed before they joined their teammates at Peterson but any opportunity to do was lost due time spent in their heated embrace and that was something she couldn't bring herself to regret.

During the drive, she couldn't stop herself from shooting glances at him, biting her lip to keep from grinning like a fool. She studied his profile and wondered if he had any idea the effect he had on her. She wondered if he'd ever realised how many times she'd wanted to nip and kiss her way along his jaw until she got to his lips so she could see if they were as soft and warm as they looked. Her gaze dropped to his hands, capable of such extremes, and wondered if he knew how many briefings she'd had to pinch her leg under the table to stop her mind from wandering about what those fingers would feel like on her body.

Jack turned his head to glance at her, quirking an eyebrow when he caught her staring. She arched her own eyebrow in response and smiled when he took one hand off the wheel to rest it on her leg just above her knee.

A soft, content sigh escaped her and she covered his hand with hers, lacing their fingers together lightly. Though this was nowhere near how she'd imagined the night going, she couldn't be happier to have been wrong.

With effort, she tried not to focus on the warm hand burning her skin through the thin material of her dress and coat and began to wonder what the Tok'ra might want with the members of SG-1.

#

Next choice! Who is the Tok'ra? Jacob, Anise or Charlie?