Jack and Sam had been attending the marriage counselling for two weeks and although no progress had been made on the Goa'uld front, they had noticed a significant change in their personal relationship and it was beginning to frighten them. They were in their session one day and noticed Rosanna and Charles were missing.
"Good, I'm glad to see all couples are in attendance." Rose said.
"I'm sorry, but where are Rosanna and Charles?" Sam asked.
"They had a significant change of attitude and amended their relationship and therefore no longer need counselling. We've decided to take couples out and observe them in a normal, social setting, how they interact. We had the Roxtons out last night and noticed a great change in their relationship, which we will discuss in their private session after the group one." Rose said.
"Right now, Rose is going to take all of the women into a separate room, while we gentlemen stay here." Thomas said.
"Come along, Ladies." Rose said. The women stood up and followed Rose. Sam looked at Jack before she left.
"Now gentlemen, this is a basic exercise. All you have to do is tell everyone else what made you fall in love with your wife and what was it about her that made you want to marry her. James, if you'd care to go first." Thomas said.
"What?" Jack said absentmindedly.
"What made you want to make Sally your wife?" Thomas asked.
"Wow, a lot of things. Her smile, her personality, her incredibly high intellect, half the time she speaks and I don't understand what she's saying, she has a wonderful sense of humour, the cutest sparkle in her eyes when she's happy. She's so fiercely independent, she could make anyone back down and give her space. The main thing I love about her is the fact that she could have anyone she chooses and she wanted me, she loves me for who I am." Jack said. Outside, Daniel and Teal'c were listening. They were taken back by what Jack was saying.
"Wow, do you think any of that was true?" Daniel asked.
"I believe it to be so. If not, then O'Neill is keeping up appearances extremely well." Teal'c said. In with the women, Rose had them all sitting in a circle.
"This exercise is for you to verbalise what you think of your husbands. Sally, why don't you start? What made you accept James' proposal for marriage? What made you fall in love with him?" Rose asked.
"Sam you have to be as convincing as Jack was." Daniel said.
"Well, he's charming, sensitive with a killer body. His personality and his dry wit. He makes me feel good about myself and always makes his opinions known. More importantly, I know he'd do anything for me." Sam said.
"Very good Major Carter." Teal'c said.
At the end of the session, after the groups had gotten back together, Rose and Thomas pulled Jack and Sam aside.
"Are you sure you don't mind us watching the two of you in a typical social setting tonight?" Rose said.
"No, of course not." Sam said.
"It would be out pleasure." Jack said.
"Good, then we will meet at O'Malley's at 6pm." Thomas said.
"Great, we'll see you there." Sam said. Then she and Jack turned to walk away. Thomas and Rose watched them walk and saw the scar on the back of Jack's neck. They spoke in a low key in Goa'uld. Sam stopped. They had turned their backs.
"What's wrong?" Jack asked. Sam edged closer to him.
"They're speaking in Goa'uld." Sam said.
"Daniel, did you get that?" Jack whispered.
"Yeah, try and get closer so I can hear what they're saying." Daniel said. Jack edged closer and heard some of the Goa'uld vernacular. Then Rose turned.
"Sorry, I dropped my wallet." Jack said. Then he and Sam walked out. They went straight to the car. "Daniel, did you get any of that?"
"All I got was Kelnok dorai prima." Daniel said.
"Former host." Teal'c said.
"How could they have known, I took my inhibitor to mask my protein marker before we went in." Sam said. Then, as Jack was getting into the driver's seat, Daniel saw the scar on the back of his neck.
"It's not you, Sam. It's Jack." Daniel said.
"The scar still remains from when you temporarily inhabited by Hathor's Goa'uld." Teal'c said.
"They must have seen it." Sam said.
"Terrific. Anyway, we'll see what happens tonight." Jack said as he drove away.
It was 5.45pm that night and Jack thought it would be a good idea to get a cab to O'Malley's. It stopped outside Sam's house and he ran to the door. He was wearing blue jeans, white t-shirt which accentuated his well-toned, upper body and his black leather jacket. He rang the doorbell and patiently waited. Moments later, Sam answered.
"Hey Carter, cab's waiting and…oh my!" Jack said as he saw her fully. She was wearing a black, flowing gypsy skirt with a red, off the shoulder gypsy top. Jack was just staring at her. He thought she looked stunning.
"Uh, Colonel, are you ok?" Sam asked.
"Huh? Oh yeah, I'm fine. You look…amazing." Jack said.
"Thank you sir. You look good too." Sam said. Hot, amazing, fantastic, boy do you ever look good. Wow, she thought.
"Ready to go?" Jack asked.
"Yeah." Sam said. She locked her door and she and Jack walked to the cab. "Where are Daniel and Teal'c?"
"They're not coming. O'Malley's is a loud place and they won't be able to hear us with the wires. And they're not exactly experts in remaining inconspicuous." Jack said as they got into the cab.
"Good point." Sam said.
Two hours into the night, after they had met with Thomas and Rose, Jack and Sam were laughing and blatantly flirting. Both had been drinking, but not an obscene amount, just enough to lower their tension barriers. Rose and Thomas were watching them intently.
"Do you remember the time we saved that Tok'ra student?" Sam blurted out. Thomas and Rose looked at her instantly. Jack looked at her.
"What did you say?" Thomas said.
"She said Token student. When we saved a token student from drowning. Right honey?" Jack interjected.
"Yeah, good times. I'm going for a soda, do you want one?" Sam said.
"No, thanks, I'm good." Jack said. Sam then walked towards the bar.
"We…uh…have to go and write our report on your progress. We'll see you both in the session tomorrow?" Rose said.
"Yeah sure." Jack said. Then Thomas and Rose walked away. Jack took another drink when he heard some commotion at the bar. He got up to see what was going on and heard fighting and shouting. Jack looked for Sam. He saw her standing at the bar, then the two men fighting. "Carter, look out!" He shouted over the crowd. But as she turned, one of the men punched the other and sent him back- right into Sam. She was forced backwards and hit her head off the bar. "SAM!" Jack forced his way through the crowd as the fighting stopped once they realised they'd hurt someone. Jack got down to her. She was unconscious with a cut on her head. "Come on, Carter, wake up."
"Do you want me to call an ambulance?" The bartender asked. Jack picked Sam up after covering her with his jacket.
"No, I'll take her home. Thanks Alex." Jack said. He walked out.
When Sam woke up, she found she was in an unfamiliar room. She had a pounding headache and a sore head. Then she found a bandage patch on her head. She was covered by a blanket as well as a leather jacket, and she was lying on the couch in a living room she felt oddly safe in. It was when she moaned when she realised that she wasn't alone.
"Hey Carter, welcome back. How do you feel?" Jack asked sitting in an armchair next to her. It was then that Sam realised she was wearing his jacket.
"Colonel?" Sam said.
"Yeah, how are you feeling?" Jack asked.
"Lousy, with a pounding headache. Where am I?" Sam asked, sitting up.
"We're in my house. It was a lot closer than yours." Jack said.
"What happened?" Sam said.
"The snakes ditched us. The bar got a little rowdy. One guy punched another and sent him back into you, forcing you to hit your head on the bar. You've been out for 2 hours. You have a concussion, but nothing a good night sleep won't fix." Jack said.
"Thank you, Sir." Sam said. Jack handed her a coffee.
"No problem. My military issue medical training had to come in handy some time." Jack said. Sam smiled. "Listen, neither of us are fit to drive; you're still dizzy and I have alcohol on my breath and it will not look good on my service record if I'm caught driving after drinking. So you're free to stay in the guest bedroom, if you like." Jack said.
"Thank you, Colonel." Sam said. "Oh wait, I have no nightwear."
"I've left one of my hockey jerseys on the bed for you." Jack said. Then he looked at her. "You really scared me tonight."
"Is this the great Jack O'Neill admitting he was scared?" Sam said.
"A momentary lapse of weakness, I assure you." Jack said. Sam giggled. "But seriously, it was quite a bad hit you took. Are you sure you're alright?"
"I'm fine sir, really. I actually think I'm ready to turn in." Sam said.
"I'll show you where it is. I'm ready to turn in too." Jack said. They both headed upstairs and stopped outside a bedroom. "Here's the guest room. Make yourself comfortable and if you need anything, don't hesitate to ask. My room's just down the hall."
"Thank you." Sam said. Before she knew what she realised what she was doing, she kissed him on the cheek. Jack looked at her. Before either of them could stop it, they were locked in a deep passionate kiss which lasted moments, but felt like an eternity. Sam's arms were around his neck and Jack's hands were on her waist. When they both broke away, they were out of breath. Sam simply smiled. "Good night, sir." She said as she disappeared into the room, closing the door behind her.
"Good night, Carter." Jack said, still reeling from what had just happened. He went into autopilot as he walked to his room and closed the door.
An hour later and Sam was lying wide awake in her bed, wrapped in Jack's hockey shirt, which was about 3 or 4 sizes too big for her. She was thinking of that kiss, how worried he had been about her as well as the casual, but obvious flirting that had been more than an act for the two Goa'uld they were investigating. She decided she needed to talk to him and it couldn't wait until morning. She went to his room and gently pushed open the door to find the light still on and him sitting up in bed.
"Colonel?" Sam asked curiously. Surprised by his unexpected visitor, Jack jumped.
"Carter? What's up?" Jack asked. Sam went in and sat on his bed.
"I think we need to talk." Sam said.
"You know nothing good ever comes after those words." Jack said.
"I need to say this; ever since we've been on this assignment, we've gotten to know each other in a way that we never normally would have under normal circumstances. I've gotten to see a side of you that's completely natural, relaxed, absent from your military façade and sarcastic quips. This has all been amplified by my previous feelings for you. The bottom line is, no matter what the rules and regulations say, I think I'm in love with you." Sam said. Jack just looked at her.
"Wow. That's…um…that's a lot to take in." Jack stammered.
"I'm sorry, I shouldn't have said anything. Forget I ever said it." Sam said quickly. She got up to leave, but felt him grab her wrist gently to stop her. He sat her back down.
"And forget about you saying to me what I've been dying to say to you?" Jack asked.
"What?" Sam asked in disbelief.
"Carter, I have been trying so hard to ignore my feeling for you and for a while, it was working. But then we were put on this assignment and I got to know you on a more personal level and they came back with a vengeance. I love you, Sam. So please forgive me for doing this." Jack said. He pulled her to him and kissed her passionately. But, instead of rejecting him, she embraced and welcomed him, letting him take her in his arms. They both leaned back on the bed until Sam was looking up at Jack and he was looking down at her.
"What about the regulations?" Sam breathed half-heartedly, as though she didn't care.
"I've waited too long for this. We'll deal with them and whatever else comes tomorrow. Tonight, we live for the moment." Jack said. Sam pulled him down into a kiss. "By the way, you look hot in my jersey."
"I think it would look better on the floor, along with your shirt." Sam said in between kisses. With that, they removed their clothes and fulfilled a long desire they had had for each other for years; a yearning fulfilled as they made love, not in a savage, animalistic, lustful way, but took it for what it was; a clear declaration of love.
The next morning, when Jack woke up, his arms were wrapped around Sam as she slept with her back into his chest. His thoughts kept going back to the previous night, filled with passion and love. Yep, he was in love with the beautiful woman asleep in his arms. He kissed her head as he tried to slide his arm from under her. But she stirred and rolled over to face him, their faces almost touching. Sam smiled as Jack kissed her.
"Morning Sam. How did you sleep?" Jack asked.
"Better than I have in a long time." Sam said with a smile.
"Me too." Jack said. Sam was lying with her head resting on his chest with her arms around him and his arms around her.
"I love you, Jack." Sam said.
"I love you too." Jack said. They were about to kiss again when the phone rang. "Oh for cryin' out loud. O'Neill." He said when he answered the phone.
"Jack, its Daniel. Do you know where Sam is? We went to her place and found her car there, but she's not, she's also not answering her cell." Daniel said.
"It's alright, Daniel, she's here with me." Jack said.
"What? What's she doing there?" Daniel asked.
"There was a fight last night and she took a hit to the head. I brought her here so I could take care of her." Jack said.
"Is she alright?" Daniel asked.
"She's fine. Look, we'll meet you and Teal'c at your place. We'll come and pick you up in an hour and a half." Jack said.
"Sure. Jack, did anything happen between you two last night?" Daniel asked.
"Goodbye Daniel." Jack said, hanging up the phone.
"We had better get dressed, huh?" Sam said.
"5 more minutes." Jack said.
"I need to go home for more clothes." Sam said.
"I said 5 more minutes." Jack said, capturing her lips in another deep, passionate kiss.