"Wait Jack." His kisses continued. "Please stop."

His lips stilled and his hands balled up into fists but stayed put. He laid his forehead on her shoulder as he caught his breath. "Sam?"

Her hands moved back to his shoulders. "I need…"

"Yes." She paused while she tried to get her thoughts together. "Anything, Sam. Just tell me what you need."

"I need to know what you would expect of me if a rescue team came through the gate tomorrow…or next year."

"What?" Sam pushed back slightly. Jack lifted his head and looked into her eyes.

"Would you expect me to just turn this off again if we were rescued?"

Jack shook his head. "We both know rescue isn't coming."

Sam took a step back. "I know better than you that the chance of being rescued is infinitely small but that doesn't answer my question. I had a hard time letting you go after 118 but I was able to tell myself that neither of us would have made the same decision if we'd known all the facts. This time we both know what we're doing. If we do this you can't expect me to just turn it off."

"It was hard for me too."

Sam tilted her head to the side. "Really? You made it look easy."

Jack stepped back up to her and put his hands on her arms. "If I hadn't made it look easy we both would have spent a year on a shrinks couch and then ended up on different teams. Trust me there was a lot of alcohol involved in acting like it was easy."

"I had no idea."

"Good, that was the plan."

"And now?"

"Open the top middle drawer of your dresser."

Sam's brow creased as she looked over his shoulder at her new dresser. He let go of her arms and nudged her. "Go on."

Sam walked over and slid the drawer open. There were two pieces of paper lying in the drawer. Sam looked back over her shoulder. Jack nodded. Sam picked up the top piece of paper and opened it.

"You signed it the day I gave it to you?" Sam held up her letter of retirement.

"Yes." Jack nodded.

"So why did you wait all this time?"

"In my gut I still felt like your reputation would be ruined when we were rescued despite your clear intentions." Sam looked back at the paper in her hand. "Look at the other page."

Sam turned back to the dresser and picked up the second piece of paper. She read it twice. She felt her throat burning as she fought back tears.

"If a rescue team shows up we'll tell them we are two retired air force officers who fell in love and made a life together and we intend to keep doing that no matter what planet we're on."

Sam spun on her left foot and put her arms out towards Jack. He closed the gap and kissed her, hard and fierce. She ran her right hand through his hair as their tongues met. A deep groan escaped his throat as her tongue traced a line along the roof of his mouth.

As their lips separated their eyes met. "You wrote your retirement letter a few days after the storm. Why did it take you so long to tell me?"

Jack snorted. "I was clear about how I felt but you thought it was brain damage. I heard you tell Leila I wasn't being myself so I went back to being myself long enough to convince you that this is what I really want."

He placed his hand on the side of her face. "I want us and I'm tired of waiting." He kissed her again, a deep long kiss. He heard the letters crumple as Sam moved her hands over his back.

Jack slid his lips over to Sam's ear. "Perhaps we ought to put those letters somewhere better."

She nodded. "That's probably a good idea." Sam handed him the letters.

"I'll put them back in my pack. Figure if we are ever rescued we'll come back for our packs."

"Makes sense." He gave her a last quick kiss and let go. He walked into his bedroom and turned on the light. Sam followed and watched him sit on the edge of the bed with his feet separated. He bent down between his legs and dragged his pack out from below the bed. He put both letters in a small pocket on the front of the pack and slid it back under the bed. As he straightened up Sam stepped between his legs. She ran her hand through his hair. He put his hands on the back on her calves and started slowly moving them up.

"You seem to really like my hair."

"It's been off limits for so long."

"Off limits?"

"I could occasionally touch your arm, shoulder, back, and a couple times even your leg and make it look nonchalant but touching your hair would have been too intimate."

"I see." His hands had made it to the middle of her thighs. Sam grabbed the bottom hem of her shirt and pulled it over head. Jack's hands gripped her thighs and a moan escaped deep in his throat.

"I've got condoms in my pack." Jack started to lean forward in an attempt to pull the pack back out from under the bed.

Sam pushed back on his shoulder. "You won't need them."

"Oh." Jack looked embarrassed by his assumption. "I'm sorry, I thought we were…"

"Oh we are, lots. You just don't need any condoms." Jack's hands moved up to Sam's buttocks just as she pushed him back onto the bed. They fell onto the bed together. Jack slid one hand up to Sam's back and held her tight as he rolled over. Her leg slid up his thigh.

"Lots? I'm an old man ya' know."

"You've kept me waiting for years. I have a lot of pent up…energy that needs to be released." Sam unbuttoned Jack's shirt and slid it down his shoulders. He lifted one arm at a time so she could take his shirt off of him. His hands roamed her body as they kissed.

"Sports bras are the worst invention ever."

Sam laughed. "I rather like them."

"That's because you've never been thwarted as you tried to impress a woman with your one handed bra unhooking skills only to discover a lack of hooks." Their talking ceased.

Jack rolled onto his back and brought Sam with him. Their breathing was ragged and they were both smiling.

"That was…"

"…better than you remembered?"

Jack squeezed her. "Yes."

"There is much more scope for imagination when instant frost bite isn't an issue."

"I do like that I get to see and feel you naked." Sam squirmed as he rubbed her naked back. "When I used to think back on our time on 118 one of my biggest regrets was the lack of nakedness."

"How often did you think about 118?"

"More than I care to admit."

Sam kissed him just under his chin. "Me too."

"I also liked that you moaned my name."

She snorted.

"What?"

"I said Jonah once in the heat of the moment and the guy I was sleeping with wasn't impressed"

"Pete?"

Sam shook her head but avoided looking at Jack. "No, it was well before Pete."

"Well before?"

"We each had to deal with 118 our own ways."

"Right. Did you ever say my name, before tonight?"

"Only while I was alone."

"Hot damn." Mental images of Sam calling out his name ran through his head. The look on his face made her giggle.

"So why no condoms? Don't get me wrong, I'm not complaining, just curious."

Sam shrugged. "How many do you have in your pack?"

Jack tightened his lips as he thought. "Four or five."

"And I have three."

"Really?"

"Yes, we all take condoms with us, just in case."

"Guess it makes sense."

"Of course it makes sense. Women are just as likely to not follow the rules and have sex with aliens as men are."

"Ok, if you insist."

"You disagree?"

"A bit but if I try and argue that women are less likely to be led by their sex organs than men you'd say I was being sexist and the last thing I want to do is start a fight while we are pleasantly naked and relaxed."

"Smart man." Sam moved her fingers through his chest hair.

"So back to your lack of need for condoms."

"Right, if I can still do math correctly we have seven or eight condoms. That would last us a few days. Then what?"

Jack's eyes got big as he looked over at her. "A few days?"

"A week, maybe."

"Are you trying to kill me?"

"You'd die happy." She lightly bit his ear. He moaned and tightened his grip on her. "The nights here are very long and I've been thinking we should try the Uraba tradition of a night break."

"I'll try just about anything you suggest, especially if you keep doing that to my ear and chest."

"Hope you don't regret those words one day."

"Me too. So just to get it clear in my now sex addled brain you said no to the condoms because we'll run out pretty soon."

"Yes."

"Ok."

"If it makes you feel any better I'm still on birth control."

Jack tuned his head and she lost her hold on his ear. "You brought along that much birth control? Is carrying a year's supply of birth control normal procedure?"

Sam laughed. "Up to three years worth."

"Three?"

Sam lifted her left arm and twisted it. "I have implants."

"Huh?"

She took his hand and rubbed his fingers under her left arm. "Those lines you feel are my birth control implants."

"Oh."

"They're good for up to three years."

"How long have you had yours?"

"Hmmmm. About two years. I'm not really sure when I was due to go back to the OB-GYN but we're still covered."

"Good to know." His fingers moved from the inside of her left arm to the outside edge of her breast.

"Mmmmmmm."

They fell asleep embracing but drifted apart in their sleep. They slept late. When Jack woke he reached out for Sam. The feel of her skin helped him wake up. He rolled over and enveloped her in his arms.

"Good morning sexy. I hope my morning breath isn't too awful."

Sam rolled over to face him. "It's pretty bad but we're early enough in this relationship that I can lie and still kiss you good morning." She kissed him as promised. "Dibs on the bathroom."

Sam hopped out of bed and raced to the bathroom. Jack enjoyed the view before she closed the door. When she came back out she was wearing one of the large shirts that had been donated to them when they first arrived.

"You are so gorgeous."

Sam blushed. "I'll go make us some breakfast."

Jack smiled. "Cinnamon rolls?"

"That is why I bought them. They were a Christmas morning tradition at my house."

"I'll be out in five." Jack stood up, gave Sam a quick peck on the lips, and headed for the bathroom. She also enjoyed the show before he disappeared from view.

Jack started a fire while Sam finished putting breakfast out on plates. They ate breakfast snuggled up together on the sofa under a blanket. Jack took their plates to the sink while Sam went to the window.

"Wow."

Jack looked over at her. "What?"

"It snowed a lot more than I expected."

"How much more?"

"I think there might be as much as two feet and it's still coming down."

Jack joined her at the window. "I wonder if this is a typical snowfall here."

"I don't know but if it is that might explain why everyone was so intent I hurry home yesterday."

"Ya' think."

"I'm going get some clothes on and go check on the animals."

Jack shook his head."I can do that."

Sam looked over her shoulder as he wrapped his arms around her. "We can do it together."

"I like how that sounds."

They both dressed in many layers and wore their boots. The snow was light and airy so it compressed as they moved through it. Sam feed the chickens and pigs while Jack milked the cow. They both mucked the stalls.

Sam dug through the supplies in the back corner. "I've got a couple ropes, figure we should tie them up between the house and the barn."

"Sure, can't hurt. I mean it isn't exactly a blizzard out there but it could get worse."

They both carried some wood with them back to the house and secured the ropes from the barn to the porch. They hung up their wet clothes and curled back up on the sofa.