"I'm so happy you're here!" Sam breathed pulling Teal'c into a hug. "All of you".
"I am most pleased to be here, Colonel Carter." he answered inclining his head when Sam pulled back. She smiled broadly.
"Daniel!" she hugged him too.
"Sam." he said frowning. "Are we the only ones you know here?"
"Ah. Well" Sam said embarrassed. "As you know, Dad had to.. go away and Mark is coming only for the..." she trailed off. She still could't say the word wedding when Jack was around. She glanced at him but his expression was unreadable.
"I'm sorry." Daniel said and deciding to leave Sam alone to greet Jack took a step down. "I'm going to get a bit to eat. " Taking the hint Teal'c followed but they didn't get very far.
"Dr. Jackson, I presume?" a man next to him said extending his arm.
"Mr. Shanahan." Daniel greeted politely taking the offered hand. "Call me Daniel."
Sam turned to meet Jack but suddenly stopped. Should she hug him too? Could she? Jack made the decision for her. He extended his arm and when she took it, he pulled her a little closer. He placed his right hand lightly on her shoulder and leaned forward.
"You look beautiful" he murmured to her ear. It wasn't exactly a hug but he didn't dare to get any closer otherwise he might just sweep her off her feet in his arms and run with her.
" Thank you. I'm so glad you're here." She said when he pulled back. " You.." she stopped. Another megawatt smile spread across her face and she giggled.
"No giggling, Colonel, remember?" Jack said a little confused.
"You bought it!" she exclaimed happily. Two heads turned towards them.
"So, how's the cop thing going for you?" Daniel asked quite loudly drawing the other man's attention back to him. He was determined to give his friends just a little more time.
Jack frowned and looked down. 'Crap!'
A while ago Teal'c had finally been granted more freedom out the base and Daniel and Sam had thought he needed more clothes. They had decided to help him and Daniel had persuaded Jack to come along. So one sunny Thursday afternoon when things were calm at the SGC they had all left work a bit early and driven to a local mall to do some shopping. At the store Sam had spotted this lovely pink knitted sweater with cable knitted braids on front. She had excitedly presented her finding to Teal'c who had politely but firmly declined. "No." he had said with clear finality in his voice. Then she had offered the sweater to Daniel and Jack. She had whined and pleaded but the guys had't budged. "Oh come on! It's so sexy when a man wears pink!" she had thrown her last argument, to no avail. In her excitement she hadn't even realized she had used the word "sexy" when talking to her CO.
Jack had though and the next day he had gone back and bought the sweater.
The dress code for the party was something around smart casual. "Something nice" Daniel had told him after asking Sam. So Jack had opted for black creased trousers and a knitted sweater. A pink sweater.
"Uh, well." he started, pulling himself together. "A guy at my age needs all the help he can get." he said casually. Hi eyes were fixed on hers though and they stared at each other for a moment.
A man's voice pulled them back to reality.
"Mr. O'Neill?" Pete said offering Jack his hand. His shake was firm which Jack noted approvingly. He hated those sloppy handshakes that made him feel like he was holding a dead fish.
"General O'Neill." Sam corrected emphazising his rank.
"Jack." Jack said. Pete looked at Sam confused.
"It's all right, you can call him that." she said.
"You can't?" he questioned
"Military." Jack and Sam responded in unison. They glanced at each other and Sam giggled again. Jack raised an eyebrow warningly but said nothing.
"Well, great to have you all here." Pete said happily. " There's a buffet over there and a bar next to it. Have fun! Excuse us." He turned to his fiancée. "Babe, there's some people I want you to meet." he said ushering her away.
Jack's eyebrows rose and he glanced at Daniel. 'Did he just call her babe?' was his silent question. Daniel shrugged.
"I need a drink." Jack muttered heading for the bar.
