Jen didn't bother to hide the yawns any more.

Not that there was anyone around to hide them from.

Unless she counted the pigeon on the ledge to her right.

Leaning heavily on the railing, she watched the city moving below her, the Sunday traffic only slightly lighter than it's usual weekday counterpart. The sun had already dropped in behind the buildings, leaving the sky still bright, but promising a spectacular sunset if the orange hues already present were any indication.

She shivered and pulled her arms in closer around her. It was summer, and the day had been warm, but with the setting sun the humidity had cracked and broken. But it wasn't the air that gave her a chill so much as her tired and weary body's inability to warm itself.

After spending close to four hours in debriefing on the Daedalus, and another six at the SGC, she'd been physically awake for over thirty-six hours.

Agent Marks had offered her the use of the hotel suite, since it was technically still set aside for her. And, since they weren't due to gate back to Atlantis until Monday afternoon, she decided she'd be a fool to look a king-sized-mattress-and-Jacuzzi-tub gift horse in the mouth.

So she readily accepted the offer.

She'd nearly fallen asleep in the tub – twice. Once shocking herself awake when her nose hit the water, and the second time when her hand twitched and she knocked the shampoo bottle off the lip and onto the floor. She decided to get out since the water was getting cold… and she was apparently heading for a drowning.

After slipping into a tank top and cotton pajama bottoms, she'd climbed into the oversized bed and spent half-an-hour tossing and turning before giving up and heading out onto the balcony.

She'd filed everything away, dissected and analyzed, gave it a label and put it aside. Everything but the pieces of the puzzle that didn't have to do with Franks.

And until she could figure those missing parts out… she wasn't sure she'd ever be able to sleep.

She knew Franks and his… henchmen… for lack of a better word – we're dead, and the lab destroyed thanks to a few well placed explosives courtesy of the engineers on the Daedalus. She knew little Ella Shannon was healthy, and alive, and back in the loving arms of her three brothers. The Shannon's would come out with little more than a reprimand for Liam and Jamie, and a promise from their oldest brother Ian they'd never do anything like that ever again.

She knew the case that was stolen from Wilsher's car contained a single vial of the enzyme and her notes specifically relating to increased strength in the subject – but luckily, there was no mention of the Wraith's location, Atlantis, or anything else that could be potentially damning to the IOA, the SGC, the Stargate program, or Atlantis. Which was a huge relief.

She also knew that Wilsher was getting off with an official letter of reprimand for his part in the theft – removing restricted property from the premises.

But that was it.

She wasn't sure how he'd managed to fluff under his behavior at the dinner – but he had. Somehow he'd copped to being drunk, which he wasn't, and admitted he gotten overly friendly, which he had, and then pulled some strings to get it all swept under the rug in return for political favor he'd have to owe someone in the future. It sucked, and she was pretty pissed off about it, but not nearly as angry as Evan had been when he'd found out.

Jen sighed.

No matter how much she tried to think around it… everything she knew, always spun back to the one thing she didn't know.

Evan.

They'd be going back to Atlantis tomorrow.

Home.

But then what?

Was everything being left here? On Earth? Written off to another time and place? What about the what-if's? What about whatever it was they'd briefly touched? Was the rest of it going to remain hidden? Would they go back to the way they'd been before – look but don't touch?

Could she do it, if she had to? Go back to the way they were?

She'd spent the last thirty minutes thinking about it… and the only answer she could come up with… was yes.

If that was all she could have… she'd take it.

But did she want to?

No. No, she didn't. She didn't want to go back to skirting around him. Dancing without music. She wanted to find out whatever it was… whatever it might be. She wanted… more.

Could she make the offer… knowing he might turn it down?

She sighed and closed her eyes, willing the sounds of the city to be gone. Wanting the breeze to taste of salt, not exhaust. Wanting the honking horns replaced with the soft sounds of the ocean waves rolling against the piers.

She wanted to go home.

At least there she had the opportunity to hide herself in her work.

Because hiding she was good at.

She yawned again and tightened the blanket around her shoulders, shivering against the touch of cool breeze across her skin.

"What…" The voice from behind her made her squeal and jump around, her hands clutching her throat. "…did I tell you about going anywhere alone?"

Evan glared at her from between the open patio doors.

"Evan." She exhaled, then cleared her throat, her hand clutched over her adrenaline spiked heart. "Lord, you scared the life out of me."

"And what if I'd been someone else?" He asked quietly, stepping out onto the patio.

Damn he looked good. Really… really… good. BDU pants, service boots, and a navy t-shirt that had to be a size too small from the way it was pulling across the front of his chest. His hair was slightly mussed and his eyes were watching her with a deep seriousness. He needed a shave, but the dark shadowing along his jaw only added to the aura of strength that seemed to be surrounding him. Her fingertips itched to touch and she clutched them tightly within the folds of the blanket to keep herself from following through.

Jen took a long, deep breath and exhaled, willing her mind to work. "Uh… someone else? Um… well… Unless you're Spiderman, you wouldn't have gotten in." She extracted her hand out from under the blanket and pointed back through the room to the double doors leading to the hallway, and the love seat parked against it. A huge vase filled with silk flowers balanced precariously on the lip of one of the cushions.

Evan raised an eyebrow, then turned back towards her.

"Interesting doorbell."

Jen shrugged, then sighed. "Unless the bad guys are using Asguard beaming technology, I figured I was pretty safe."

He frowned. "What if there's a fire?"

Jen couldn't contain the soft snort at that thought.

"Then I'll move the couch." She smiled, but it quickly faded when he didn't respond in kind.

He stepped closer. "You don't have a transmitter."

"I don't plan on needing one today."

"And you planned on needing it yesterday?" He raised an eyebrow.

Jen angled her head. "Um… well… no."

He stopped in front of her.

Jen wasn't really sure how to read the expression on his face. His eyes seemed bluer than before – almost grey. He wasn't smiling, but he wasn't really frowning either. He just looked… serious… so she told him so.

He didn't answer, just angled his head, watching her. "You sure you're okay?" He finally asked.

Jen started to smile, but the intensity of his gaze made her hesitate. She took a step closer, closing the gap between them. Tipping her head she stared up into his face.

"I'm fine." She answered softly. "Thanks to you."

His eyes shifted to something to her left before sliding back to hers. "If I'd been paying attention in the first place-"

Jen's fingers covered his mouth, cutting him off. "You are so not going there."

"But-"

"No." She said firmly, grabbing his face with both hands, the blanket pooling around her feet. The whiskers along the side of his jaw tickled her palms. "There's no way any of us could have known what was going to happen. It's over. It's done. I'm fine. Ella's fine. And don't you forget for one minute, I'm still mad at you for that whole superman stunt." She shook her head and lowered her hands but he reached for them, holding her fingers firmly in his.

"Jeeze, Jen." His voice dropped and she could suddenly see the pain that flashed behind his eyes. "When I saw Rousseau pointing that gun at your head… Shit… I don't think I've ever felt that helpless before in my life."

"Evan." She stepped towards him, twisting her fingers around until she was holding his hand as firmly as he held hers. "You saved my life… even if I do think it was a stupid and reckless thing to do. You saved my life."

"If I'd been a fraction of a second slower…"

"But you weren't." She insisted. "And if you keep beating yourself up about something you did… right… then… then…" she hesitated and shook her head. "Then I don't know what to do because you didn't do anything wrong… so…" she nodded and shrugged. "Okay I'm completely out of ideas. But I'll think of something."

Evan snorted, and Jen was relieved to see the slight impression of a smile.

"Well, that's almost a smile." She said with a pout. "It'll have to do."

This time Evan couldn't stop the grin, nor did he want to.

She'd scared him, being taken so quickly, scared him by being threatened, and nearly given him a heart attack at being almost executed. Then she'd yelled at him for saving her life, held her own through hours and hours of debriefing, and disappeared while he'd been in follow up discussions.

He'd wanted to throttle her when he found out she'd come back to the damn hotel suite for the night… alone. But wasn't sure if he should be pissed off she'd left without telling him, relieved she was okay, happy she'd come back alone and not with someone else, or angry she'd come back alone and not with him.

His head was spinning through so many different emotions he didn't know where to start. So he started with her.

Her hair was still damp from the shower, messy and tangled, hanging loosely around her bare shoulders. She looked so damn cute… sexy… standing there in a pink tank top and matching hello-kitty jammie-pants, her bare toes sticking out from the bottom of the too-long hem.

She looked… younger somehow… vulnerable. Her eyes carried a trace of weariness that only sleep would cure. The long, uninterrupted kind.

He stared at the blue hue beneath the skin along the left side of her face. His fingers lifted to touch, but she kept her hand tightly wrapped in his, so he ended up raising both their arms instead. He brushed his knuckle lightly along the side of her jaw.

"This… I didn't prevent." He said quietly.

Jen tilted her head, pressing his hand against her cheek. "No… I did that to myself. I should have known the difference between one of Laura's little explosions and something that would cave the roof in."

Evan felt the smile pulling at the corners of his mouth. She had most certainly done some damage with that little cocktail. She'd destroyed half the lab – no wonder Franks had been pissed off. Franks had underestimated her… just like everyone always did.

Then Evan frowned, his eyes moving from the bruise on her face down to another he could now see on the inside her arm. He hadn't seen her with her arms and shoulders bare until now. And he hadn't seen this new bruise.

Taking a step back, his chest tightened. He released her hands and straightened her arm slowly, angling his head to get a better look.

Jen frowned and followed his eyes. "What?"

He held her upper arm, just above the bruise, and raised his eyes to hers with a thousand questions. "Are there more?"

"More? More what?"

"Bruises?"

She stared up at him for what felt like an eternity. Then she shrugged. "Yes."

He wanted to know… but he didn't want to know.

Jen shook her head slowly, but her hand subconsciously reached for her throat and he followed her fingertips, noting the discoloration along the side of her neck. How the hell hadn't he noticed that before? And what else had he not seen?

He could feel his chest constricting.

"Evan… they're just bruises." She stared up at him. "They'll go away."

Releasing her arm, Evan stepped back. Not knowing what to do with his hands, he clenched them into fists at his sides.

After a moment, she tipped her head to the side and pointed to the soft tissue beneath her jaw, and the two small circular bruises on each side that he'd just noticed. "Rousseau was… upset… I blew up the lab." Then she turned and lifted her hair, showing him a perfectly formed thumb print on the left side of her neck, and the accompanying fingerprints on the right. Then she let her hair drop, and turned back around, pointing out the one he'd already seen on her upper arm, a second on her left forearm, and it's matching counterpart on her right.

"Oh… yeah… and then there's this…" She turned to the side and hiked up the hem of her tank top with her right hand. With her left thumb, she lowered the waistband on her jammie-pants, and showed him the angry, red, vampire-looking fang-marks just above her left hip – a souvenir from the taser.

He stared at the smooth, creamy skin, and the vicious welts. He covered them up with his palm, urgently seeking to hide them away. Forget about them. Pretend it never happened. "Will it scar?" He heard himself asking.

Her hand covered his, pressing his palm against her cool skin and he looked up, suddenly feeling very lost.

"No." She said softly, the fingers of her free hand gently brushing over the side of his jaw. "No scar. No one will know it was ever there."

"I will."

"Then it'll be our little secret." She answered, her thumb teasing across his chin.

Evan fought a sudden urge to grab it with his tongue and suck it into his mouth. "Secret?" He said slowly, unable to stop his index finger from sliding across the smooth skin of her hip where his hand was still being firmly held beneath hers. "Is that what this is?"

Her eyes were wide and he frowned to see a sudden flash of hurt before it was quickly hidden away. Her hand froze against his cheek and she slowly dropped her arms to her sides.

"I… is…" She swallowed, her teeth trapping her bottom lip. "Do you… Is that what you want?"

He pressed his palm into the soft skin of her side, then slid his fingers slowly around to her lower back, where he splayed his hand over the soft curve of her spine. She inhaled sharply and arched her back, but didn't move away.

"No." He finally answered, sliding closer, giving her time to retreat if she wanted to. "Do you?"

She shook her head. "No."

He wasn't sure just how badly he'd wanted to know that until the relief surged through him.

He inched closer, almost smiling to feel her hands trembling ever so slightly as they pressed lightly against his sides. "Are you sure?"

She nodded.

He lowered his head. "Really sure?"

She nodded again.

His head lowered further, his eyes locked on her now parted lips. Her lids were lowered as she stared directly at his mouth. He stopped a breath away – his lips hovering just over hers.

"Positive?"

"Evan?" Jen exhaled, her breath mixing with his.

"Yes?"

"Shut up and kiss me." She whispered.

Always a man to follow orders… kiss her is exactly what he did.

Dropping his head, she met him halfway, and he tasted her sweetness and hesitation. With his fingers threaded through her damp hair, he pulled her closer, exploring tentatively at first, but the way she rose up on the tips of her bare toes pulled him deeper and he felt his soul falling. Her tongue reached out to dance with his, a soft whimper escaping from the back of her throat. He pressed closer, feeling his body reacting with heat and vengeance. He couldn't stop his answering groan when her fingers slid up the side of his neck. With one hand tightly gripping his upper arm, and the other sliding through his hair, she had him frozen in place and time and he most certainly didn't want to leave.

Ever.

When they finally broke apart, Jen was having trouble breathing, trouble thinking, and trouble standing. She braced her hands against his shoulders, suddenly realizing she actually needn't worry – he was already holding her up.

"Okay… wow." She slid her arms around his neck and dropped her head against his shoulder, her heart skittering so sporadically inside her ribcage she could almost hear it.

"Yeah." Evan managed to croak, then cleared his throat.

After a few moments, Jen exhaled sharply. "Thank god we didn't do that on the dance floor."

"Oh?" Evan smiled over the top of her head. "Why's that?"

She lifted her head and tilted her neck back. "Because my legs won't work."

"I see." He grinned. "Then maybe we should sit down."

Jen nodded. "Probably a good idea."

"That would involve moving." He raised an eyebrow.

"Usually."

"You might have to let go of me."

"You first." She narrowed her gaze.

Neither one of them let go of the other.

Evan started to laugh, and glanced over his shoulder at one of the reclining patio chairs in the corner. With his arms tightly wrapped around her waist, and her arms clasped around his neck, he stepped back, and she stepped forward, until the back of his knees hit the edge of the chair. He sat down, pulling her down with him, making her squeal as she fell on top of him and nearly rolled off the far side.

"You're right…" She blinked when he stopped her fall, her upper body dangling half off the chair. "This is much better."

Evan snorted and hauled her up, angling his chin towards her discarded blanket lying in the middle of the patio. "Go get your blanket."

Jen scrambled off the chair and retrieved the blanket. Evan hiked himself back in the chair, and dropped his legs off on either side. When she returned, the blanket once again draped around her, he reached for the edges and guided her down, tucking her in between his legs. Curling her feet up beneath the blanket, she rested her head on his shoulder, and he wrapped his arms around her, settling her against his chest.

"That's better." She acknowledged.

"Hmm." He agreed, adjusting his legs to a more comfortable position and settling back against the cushioned seat.

After a few moments, Jen yawned loudly, then sighed, making him laugh when she buried her cold nose against the side of his neck. "It's the middle of summer, how the hell can your nose be cold?"

"I'm tired." She answered. "I always get cold when I'm tired.

"Then go to sleep." He said simply.

She yawned again and shook her head. "Careful what you wish for." She sighed sleepily. "You sit here too long and I'm totally going to fall asleep right on you. Just give me a shake when you're ready to go, 'kay?"

Evan rested the back of his head against the cushion, and smiled up into the approaching darkness.

He wasn't going anywhere.

.

.

And that was exactly the position John found them in several hours later after he'd given up trying to reach either one of them on the radio.

His CMO - curled beneath a large blanket - was sprawled across the Major's chest, and the Major's arms held her possessively, even in sleep.

John had to smile to note that neither one of them had bothered removing the fake wedding rings yet.

He made a note to have the SGC bump their gate window back a few hours.

It was the least he could do.

After all, he'd just spent the last two hours convincing everyone on board the Daedalus the Doctor and the Major really were married.