The last time Jack had caught his 2IC staring at the mirror, her stomach had still been flat. This time, her shirt was gathered at the top of her massive bump, and her hands moved gently over it as she stared. And while Jack was pretty up on Carter's expressions, that one was impossible to read.

"Y'know, Carter, I never would've described you as vain," he spoke up, his voice light.

A tiny smile crossed her face, but she didn't stop what she was doing. "Yeah, well. Deep down, you know. But really, it's the physics of this that blow my mind."

Only Carter. "How so?"

"My entire center of gravity has changed. And on top of that, my ligaments are looser, so I just feel unsteady all the time – like I'm about to topple over. And of course, there's the fact that this little girl is never a static load," she added, pointing to her stomach.

"Well, sounds like you're in the home stretch, Carter." And it made him glad to be back with her – quietly vacating the guest room during her dad's visit had been the right thing to do, but staying away had been hard. He worried about her.

"Oh, yeah?"

"Yeah – the final phase. Big, awkward, uncomfortable."

This time, the smile won out and she turned to face him. "Yup, that's me! Oof!" she sighed, one hand flying to the top of her stomach.

"Baby likes sports," Jack put in.

"I wonder if I can turn my backyard into a kickball field," Sam mused. "She'd win every game." Another, smaller pain in her back made her scowl. "Or boxing, maybe. Hey, Little Bit – not the kidneys!"

Grinning, he moved further into the room and perched on the edge of the bed, putting himself even with the baby – well, with Carter's ample chest, really, but close enough. "You in there," he ordered. "You calm down."

The warmth of his hands, the way they so easily spanned her stomach, always brought a smile to Sam's face, but this was the first time he'd touched her bare skin. Her fingers itched to run through his hair as he leaned close, having his own private conversation with the child she carried.

Another kick landed square under his hand, and his eyes flew wide. "Well, tell me how you really feel about it," he teased, and Sam chuckled.

"She likes you, sir."

"Crazy kids." His thumbs softly, absently caressed her skin, and Sam sighed at the feeling. It drew his attention. "You okay?"

"Would you stop asking me that?" she answered with a smile.

He shook his head. "It's my job. I'm gonna go start dinner, okay?"

Reluctantly, she took a step back as his hands fell away. "Yeah, sounds good."

One glance back as he hit the doorway found her staring back into the mirror again, her lips pursed in distaste as she stared at her new body. He knew she'd been struggling with the loss of her perfect figure for quite a while. "Carter," he said softly.

"Sir?"

"I don't think you quite understand the power of… that," he said, motioning more than a little uncomfortably toward her stomach.

"I don't know what you mean, sir."

"Of course you don't." He sighed. "I'm just sayin'… women and men see these things differently, that's all."

The blank expression didn't change, and she shook her head a little.

"Fine." Subtlety was clearly not going to work. "It's hot, okay?" In fact, if it were his kid, he'd… Oh, that thought was dangerous, and he pushed it aside. For the moment.

Her lips parted slightly in surprise. "Really?"

"Oh, yeah. Super hot." And before he could embarrass himself further, he closed the door behind him.