Originally, I planned this as a four part story and, therefore, intended to finish this fic here. Now I realize there's a bit more I wish to say and some loose ends I want to tie up. RL is about to get real busy for a short while. So you might have to wait longer for the next part, but I have started working on it. Watch this space, LOL! Meanwhile, I hope you enjoy this part.
Staking a Claim Part 4
At some point she interrupted their idyll to make them fresh coffee, then she returned without comment to their quiet and comfortable embrace. To Jack, it felt like coming home; to Sam it was like fulfilling a wish.
"I've thought of something to say," she said eventually and before he could open his mouth, continued. "Why the heck did we wait so long?"
He loosed an amused grunt, running his fingers through her hair. "Because we're both crap at this? Are we gonna pick over all those old bones or should we pretend like nothing ever happened?"
"Nothing did ever happen," she said, looking up at him with a smug expression and he grinned back at her mischievously.
"Right. But it sure is happening now."
"It sure is and it can't happen fast enough for me."
Her comment came as a pleasant surprise to Jack and he leaned down to kiss her forehead, marveling at her unexpected directness. He had anticipated they'd be playing a game of bluff and double bluff for a while before getting their acts together. This all seemed too good to be true. However, he wasn't inclined to question it because he might jinx it. Then she suggested something that genuinely shocked him.
"Stay for the weekend?" Sam could see from his open-mouthed expression that he was astonished. Her appeal literally took his breath away. "You're shocked," she said frowning and hoping she hadn't gone too far in her effort to take the prize.
"I-I never expected…" He paused, taking the breath that he badly needed, and she plunged on.
"I guess I'm coming on a little bit strong, huh?" It suddenly worried her he might imagine that and think less of her as a result. Jack could read the concern in Sam's expression.
"No!" he asserted hastily. "I like this bold, go getting Sam Carter thing you've got goin'. I'm not outraged shocked, just… bowled over shocked." Grinning, Jack was thinking how much he longed to make love to her though he might never have dared make such a move this soon.
"Tell me I'm not dreaming, Sam," he said, biting his lip apprehensively. In response, she pinched him, tittering. "Ow!" he cried. "I guess I'm not dreaming then."
"No, not dreaming, Jack."
Unfortunately, her little nip failed to jolt him out of the abruptly severe case of jitters that hit Jack when he realized how badly this could all still go wrong. What if they weren't truly compatible? What if sex together sucked? There were many ifs and buts and that was quite daunting.
Then, despite his rush of desire, for various reasons he was not entirely certain going all the way with Sam this quickly was the right thing to do. Sure, he had waited a long time for this, they both had. Conversely, those pesky Regs still stood in their way even if it was only for a short time.
"I'm still your CO, Carter," he said in an attempt to be rational. Sam was far less cautious and eyed him challengingly.
"Who cares anymore, right? In a few days, it won't matter."
"Well, the Regs care," he replied knowing they'd broken them already. Regardless of what his heart wanted, O'Neill's pragmatic side continued to argue that lovemaking might be a breach too far. Reason waged war with desire. 'Damn it, I want this! Why shouldn't I get what I want? I deserve it, don't I? I'd be crazy to refuse, wouldn't I?'
While he argued with himself, Sam pulled away from their embrace, twisting round and facing him with crossed legs. Her bare feet pressed into the flesh of his thigh and Jack suppressed a grunt. Sam seemed about to make her case but he preempted her, turning a little himself to engage with her eyes.
"I'll stay anyway," he declared, feelings winning over logic. "I'd stay for the rest of my life if you'd have me."
She looked taken aback by that confession and, having voiced his sincerely meant commitment, Jack felt self-conscious. One of those awkward moments he'd suspected they'd have well before coming this far. For a second, he thought he'd revealed too much too soon and his gaze wandered away from hers uneasily. Sam, however, recovered her composure quickly and swiftly retorted in a way that simultaneously surprised and pleased him.
"An offer I can't refuse." Reaching for his hand, she lifted it to her mouth and sucked his fingertips, making Jack sigh with longing and intensifying his urge to make love to her. His eyes found hers again as he sought to read her expression. What he saw was hunger, affection, possibly way more, and his heart skipped a couple of beats. "Pity I'll be in Nevada while you're still here in the Springs."
Jack couldn't have agreed with Sam more and found himself amused by the irony. The only reason they could do this now was because she was leaving his command. That very fact, however, could be one of the biggest obstacles to their fledging relationship.
Her words prompted him to believe she wanted to discuss how they should handle that physical distance. Jack had no answers, only more questions. Nonetheless, he was determined to find a way of making it work if humanly possible. What she said next staggered him even more than any of her previous statements.
"Of course, Las Vegas is in Nevada too…" She left the sentence hanging, giving him a provocative look that he returned with one of astonishment.
"V-Vegas? W-what, um…" He was totally flustered. Everyone knew what Vegas was most famous for aside from gambling. Had she just proposed?
"You did say the rest of your life, didn't you?" She was still holding his hand and she kissed it, this time nibbling those fingertips with sensual small nips while she waited for a response. Jack was still nonplussed, stammering when he replied, a befuddled reaction that gave Sam a thrill. He looked like a somewhat lost pubescent teenager, a cute look on Jack.
"I, um, I. Yes, that's what I said," he confirmed, breaking her hold on his eyes and staring down at his lap.
Sam had not simply bamboozled Jack by what she seemed to be saying but with her tantalizing though gentle seduction. Now not only was she sucking the tips of his fingers again, which felt so good he could barely concentrate, but she had uncrossed her legs and was softly kneading his thighs with her toes.
"And you meant it, didn't you?" She knew the answer. Jack wasn't the kind of man who would flippantly tell a woman he'd happily stay with her forever. Inside, her thudding heart and jangling nerves were at odds with her outwardly confident appearance. She meant it too. It was obvious Jack, on the other hand, had trouble believing that. She'd shocked him again and Sam wasn't sure if it was outraged shock or bowled over shock.
"W-well, yes, Sam, but… are you suggesting what I think you are?" He couldn't quite believe she was being this forward. First, she kissed him then asked him to spend the weekend with her and all that implied. Now she appeared to be proposing marriage. Jeez, was she thinking they should elope just like that?
"Well, I didn't mention Vegas because it's got casinos. I'm just saying Jack. I'm not necessarily suggesting right now but…" she replied, shifting position again to kneel on the couch where she had just been sitting. Grasping his chin between her thumb and forefinger, she turned his face toward her and he looked up. "You think I wouldn't stay with you for the rest of my life if you'd have me too?"
"You don't know that!" he protested with a wild flourish.
"I don't and you do?"
It was a fair point and Jack couldn't deny it. He'd said it and meant it hadn't he? Then why couldn't she mean it too? Still he attempted to resist her allure. "W-we haven't, I mean, after one drunken night on your couch and a single kiss?"
"We can soon rectify that," she said, her expression sublimely seductive. Leaning forward, her lips approached his and her breath on his face made him quiver. Then she touched her mouth to his, her tongue insistent on passing inside. Jack did not intend to fight her and gripped Sam's hair as his mouth opened to let her probe, giving back as good as he got.
"No pressure Jack," Sam muttered breathlessly as their mouths parted. She barely moved her face away from his so the space between them was infinitesimal, the atmosphere electric.
Jack wasn't sure what to think. Despite Sam's apparent supreme confidence, he continued to argue. His inner cynic ruled his words and, in part, so did his heart and past resentments. Pulling back, he increased the distance between them.
"Christ, Sam, it took you two weeks to accept the cop's proposal. Are you really expecting me to believe…?"
She smiled inwardly at his reference to Pete as "the cop" as if he didn't want to speak the name. Perhaps he didn't. Sam could understand that and why Jack might feel jealous of her relationship with him. She knew she had been green with envy when she'd found out about Kerry. 'The CIA woman", as Sam inwardly referred to her. That little discovery had certainly jolted her, forced her to think - and act.
"You aren't Pete," she interrupted, a few simple words that meant a lot.
Jack took a few breaths, sinking back into the couch and scrubbing his hands through his hair with a sigh, all manner of emotions raging through him.
"I thought we weren't going to pick over all those old bones," Sam added patiently. She could understand why her relationship with Pete could be a stumbling block between them but was upset that Jack couldn't simply take her openness at face value.
"It's only a few weeks since you broke it off with him and since your dad died. You think I don't know how grief can make people act out? I-I'm just finding this hard to believe. You seem so sure about us."
Sam grunted in frustration. "You think I'm acting out? I see."
Realizing she was irritated, Jack tried to suppress his incredulity and confusion. "Don't be pissed with me," he said, brushing a hand over her cheek.
"I'm not." In fact, she was wondering how to deal with his doubts. "I'm just… Let's not spoil today by getting into a dumb argument. We don't have to talk about this now. We don't have to talk at all."
Not being the best conversationalist in the world, Jack was content with that idea for now. He knew he had to do some thinking, and fast. Why was he hesitant? Because he didn't believe she could feel this committed before they had even started this radically new relationship? Truthfully, he didn't really believe that either. Sam had feelings for him, he had no doubt about that, but they were moving at light speed and he couldn't keep up. What she was suggesting was huge and awesome, staggering.
Mutely, with a few simple moves and gestures, he urged Sam to lie on the couch with her head on his lap. Once she had, he stroked her hair absently and pondered their mind-boggling conversation. He wasn't looking at her but she watched him as he slumped back staring at her ceiling.
Pushing her fingers through the gaps between the buttons on his shirt, she caressed his stomach, deciding she had to reveal more, make him understand how she truly felt.
"Jack, I'm never going to love you any more than I do now," she confessed in a low voice and his caresses stilled as he regarded her speechlessly. "Nothing to do with my dad's death or breaking up with Pete. I've been in love with you for… probably years. You must have figured that out by now. If you aren't sure…"
Her declaration overwhelmed him and Jack attempted to remain calm and focused, stifling his turbulent thoughts. It wasn't that he wanted to dissuade her from her evident conviction. They were simply moving faster then he could ever have conceived. Only a few hours before he had been getting drunk in a bar mourning for what might never happen and now Sam had propelled him into a dreamscape.
For himself, Jack was as sure about them as he needed to be. He would make love to her right now if that was what she wanted. He would even elope with her if that was too, although he'd prefer she knew him better first – knew what she was really getting. He wasn't a good bargain or leastwise that's what he believed.
Nerves aside, Jack was darned sure he wanted it as much as she claimed to. He wasn't going to change his mind about her. Not after carrying that torch for as many years.
"I'm not sure you know me as well as you think you do," he said, managing self-restraint, although quite how he did that was a mystery to him. He should be making love to her right now. Confessing his feelings. Anything other than sitting there like a halfwit, arguing. Something innate within Jack forced him to exercise that reluctant self-control. "Maybe I'm not the guy you think I am."
"Bullshit," she said, abruptly sitting up and taking his hand. "I know you way better than many wives will ever know their husbands. I know you well enough. What about you?"
Jack was surprised she needed to ask. Sighing heavily to relieve his inner tension, he curbed his caution and surrendered to his gut impulse, the romantic rather than pragmatic side of his soul. Moving closer, the palm of one hand lightly pressed her cheek and a wisp of a smile appeared on his lips. Before he even replied, Sam knew she'd won - if you could call it winning, if indeed any real battle had actually taken place. She'd got him.
"Last night in the bar driving myself nuts thinking about you," he whispered hoarsely, the emotion of the moment getting to him, "thinking about kissing you, making love to you and even marrying you. Kissing, making love… they seemed possible. Marrying? That seemed real crazy at the time, but it's not crazy."
He trailed off but Sam said nothing, simply staring into his eyes and waiting, thinking he hadn't finished. She was right.
"I'm in deep, Sam," he continued, his dark eyes unambiguously radiating love. "l-I guess you must have figured that out by now too. I know what I want. I just hope I can give you what you need."
She grinned. "So, committed?"
"Yes. Committed," Jack agreed with a nod. Smiling more broadly, he smoothed a finger over her face. "Always was."
"I didn't doubt it." Sam inched closer.
"Hardly the most romantic way for two people to decide to get married," he responded, bending so close their lips almost touched.
"We've got plenty of time for romance. Years. Right now, I would really like you to make love to me, Jack O'Neill."
"Right now?" he queried with a pleased smirk and she nodded.
"Sex is the best hangover cure ever, or that's what I'm told."
"Hangover? What hangover?" he quipped with a wink, catching a glimpse of Sam's smiled reaction before cupping her face in his hands and finally kissing her. The kiss embodied heartfelt passion, was a soaring rhapsody that verified their feelings with significantly more clarity than the spoken word. Heated, intense and all consuming.
He felt more alive than he had for a long time, wanting nothing more than to make love to her immediately as she wished. She was vibrantly elated and pleased with herself. Their mutual hunger was apparent.
One of Jack's now trembling hands trailed down her face and chest, wandering under her top to smooth her flesh and envelope a breast. Then he stopped abruptly, meeting her eyes with fiery intensity tinged with a hint of doubt.
"What if we're bad at this?" he asked.
"We won't be."
"Are you really as super confident about it as you seem?"
"No. Actually I'm terrified," she admitted, disarming him once again with her candor.
Jack chuckled nervously. "Good, because I am too."
"Yeah, you're shaking a little."
Sam could feel the tremor through his touch. Or perhaps she was the one that quivered. Probably both of them.
"What's a minor earthquake or two between friends, huh?" he quipped.
Giving her no chance to reply, he kissed her again, this time his hands exploring seductively. She responded with a few moves of her own, leaving him gasping for more than mere air when he pulled his lips away.
"It seems like I staked that claim at the perfect moment. I think I just struck gold," Sam muttered breathlessly.
"Amen to that," Jack said with a wickedly sexy grin, starting to unbutton her shirt.
To be continued in Part 5
Disclaimer: Stargate SG-1 and its characters are the property of Stargate (II) Productions, Showtime/Viacom, MGM/UA, Double Secret Productions, and Gekko Productions. This story is for entertainment purposes only and no money exchanged hands. No copyright infringement is intended. The original characters, situations, and story are the property of the author. This story may not be posted elsewhere without the consent of the author. Any similarity to real persons, living or dead, is coincidental and not intended by the author. Copyright © 2009 Su Freund