When he arrived at Sam's house he was glad her car was parked in front of it. However she didn't open. He glanced through the window to make sure she really wasn't there and not just pretending to avoid having to open the door for him. As her car was there she couldn't be that far away, maybe she had gone out for a walk. He decided to wait for her, there's no way that he's not going to have this conversation today. He needs to talk to her, even if she just listened, he had to try and make her understand and hopefully forgive him.

After fifteen minutes of pacing up and down on her front porch he decided to take a seat on the steps. Anxiously he rubbed his sweaty hands together, eagerly anticipating her arrival. Forty five minutes after he sat down he heard footsteps closing by. He would recognize the gentle patter of her footsteps on the ground everywhere. And as she turned the corner, he noticed she had clearly been out for a run, sweaty and breathless. It seemed she had been jogging for quite some time. He knew her well enough to know she doesn't just go for a run only to keep her fit, but also to clear her head. She looked refreshed and exhausted at the same time. Jack was aware that there was nothing wrong with pregnant women jogging if they had been doing it before pregnancy. However, he couldn't deny feeling concerned upon learning about the near miscarriage.

She hadn't seen him yet, so he took the opportunity to really look at her, the first time in months. She wore her gray running shoes, a black leggings and her black sports bra that looked out from underneath her gray sports shirt which she had clearly been wearing before her pregnancy as it clung to her body, stretching over her rounded belly and her breasts. Her cheeks flushed from the work out and her blond short hair sticking out in every direction. To him she was the most beautiful woman. He wanted nothing more than to hold her in his arms and never let her go again. At that moment, she saw him and stopped in her tracks. Rooted to the spot, minutes passed before she stepped up to him.

"Sir!" She asked, surprised to see him here. "What are you doing here?"

He studied her for a moment and whispered "Is it mine?"

Her tongue peeked out and nervously moistened her lips. With an icy voice she replied, still angry with him, "It doesn't matter."

"You're right, it doesn't, I don't care who's baby this is, I love you anyway and I will love this child if you let me. Please Sam, just listen to me, okay?"

Sam was shocked, she hadn't expected that. Had he really just said that he loved her? And that he wouldn't care if she wasn't carrying his child? She was not entirely sure if he would ever be willing to become a father again, let alone that he would consider accepting a child who is not his own. Not that it wasn't his, and he loved all kids, but that actually surprised her. Anxiously, afraid her voice would fail, she simply nodded.

"Should we have this talk here on your front porch or would you like to get more comfortable and private?"

She took a deep breath to push her nervousness down. And with a relatively steady voice, she replied. "Come on in, I'd like to freshen up a bit. You can start the coffee machine." Sam went straight to her bedroom and into the adjoining bathroom. When she took off her clothes she heard him rummaging in her kitchen to set up the coffee machine. Goosebumps appeared on her skin just from the thought of him in her house. She had missed him dearly and was almost about to give in to him without hearing what he had to say, but only almost.

As she was standing in front of her mirror she took a close look at her body. Due to her weight loss at the beginning of her pregnancy she just gained weight on her belly. Her breasts are fuller and the rest of her body is back to normal. She hadn't actually looked at her body until now and wondered what Jack sees when he's looking at her. She gently stroked her belly and felt the movements of her baby again. Dressing in some comfortable shorts and a new shirt she took a last look in the mirror, not able to hide her bump she smiled.

"So kid, let's see what daddy has to say!"

She entered her kitchen but Jack was nowhere to be seen. The door to her backyard was open so she stepped outside and saw Jack leaning against the railing. Taking the opportunity she sneaked up on him and watched him closely. He looked worried. His jaw tense with stress, his gaze fixed on the steaming cup. Sam's coffee was carefully placed beside him on the railing.

Stepping right next to him, she took the cup and sipped the hot liquid. His head flew sideways and checked her out. The shorts that replaced her leggings made her legs look endlessly long and her tight blue top, which hugged her stomach, made her blue eyes shine even more.

"Sam…ahm…I.. I'm not sure where to start, so I'll begin with what happened on Edora, please let me explain it from my perspective. I now know that not everything I assumed was right. We hid in the caves until the fire rain stopped. We were stuck in there for days, Laira, Garan, his girlfriend and me. When we got out we found the other survivors. They told me that after a few days they tried to make it to the gate and when they got there it was gone. I couldn't believe it. For two weeks my days were filled with digging. I was afraid to find your bodies buried down there, I had no idea if you made it through the gate in time or if the meteor hit you too. We had to rebuild the houses before the harvest. I helped to earn my stay. Laira let me sleep on the floor in her living room. The weeks passed by and I thought if you haven't managed to save me by now, either you have no way or you really didn't survive."

"You gave up on us, so easily." Her voice was cracking.

He unconsciously tensed his jaw. "Sam… I haven't said it was easy. In fact, it was the most difficult thing I did. Besides, I didn't even know if you were still alive."

"And yet you slept with her!"

He bowed his head, knowing he had to be careful to explain it. Remembering what Jacob said, arguing with pregnant women is barely rational.

"Not at first. She told me she mourned her husband for 100 days. Ironically after 100 days there was a feast and yes, by then I gave up hope to ever be rescued. That day I gave away my clothes as a symbol to accept and start my new life there. I drank too much and due to the alcohol and out of pain to never see you again I gave in to Laira and slept with her. I didn't love her then and I never will, I already regretted it the next day. That was the day you came to rescue me. Just one day, Sam. If I would have been stronger just one more day, we wouldn't have this talk and I would not have acted like a jerk back then. I was ashamed and I'm so sorry that I lost faith in you."

"If I just wouldn't have gone home that one day. I could have worked through the night and…"

"No! Don't go there! You already risked too much. I should have been stronger. Nothing of this is your fault. Don't ever say that again. Risking your life and that of your child…I'm not worth it. You should have rested more."

"No, I needed to get you back. I couldn't turn off my mind until I found a solution, I desperately needed you to come home. And then…"

"And then I was an ass. On the planet as well as afterwards. I wanted to follow you to the infirmary, but Hammond stopped me. I felt I didn't even get to breathe before he put me on that undercover mission. He promised me you'd all understand when it's done and that we'll get all the time we need to reconnect as a team. I argued with him a lot. I didn't want to do this without you all, but it wasn't Hammonds choice. The Tollans and Asgard insisted on it and I knew I had to say some pretty mean things to keep you at a distance. We thought about the most logical behavior and when Hammond got to know more about what happened on Edora he planned for me to act like I wanted to retire there. Like I hadn't wanted to be rescued. I had to say all those awful things to you, like that I blamed you for not getting me back sooner and losing faith in you. It was believable, but it was as far away from the truth as it could be. I admit I lost faith, but I never blamed you for anything. And if I had known about your pregnancy then, I would have been far more careful with what I said to you. It's not true that you don't know me as well as you thought. You of all people know me like no one else does. I love it that you do and it scares me at the same time. No one has known me like you do, not even Sara…"

Sam had to swallow, "I thought I knew you…"

"You do! I hated to have to be so rude to you. I love that you probably know me better than I know myself. You always know what I need, even before I know it myself. You leave me alone when I need to be by myself and you refuse to leave my side, even if I ask you to when I need someone close to me. I don't want to lose that."

"You have a strange way of showing it."

"That wasn't me, Sam. However, I am to be blamed for everything that happened when I came back now. Just seeing you in your lab on Friday… you were so close and still so far away. I was looking forward to being with my team again, with you and then Hammond told me you were not going off world anymore. I became angry. That was not what we agreed on. Then I saw you, obviously pregnant and I couldn't breathe and think clearly anymore. I thought I was too late, that I lost my chance with you and drove you into the arms of another man. Even if it scares the shit out of me to be again responsible for a little human being, I know I would want that with you! Because I know with you by my side I can do everything! And Sam, if there is the slightest chance that you can forgive me, I'd take it. And hoping that you aren't seeing anyone right now, I have to ask you. Please forgive me what I have done and what I had to do under orders. I don't want to ever let you go."

He took a deep breath, conscious of not rambling further and allowing her the opportunity to express herself. She herself had to breathe consciously, trying to process all that he had said. Never before had she heard Jack O'Neill talk as much as he did now.

"So you say that you would like to raise another man's child?"

"Not another man's child. Your child! It's half you, so it can be nothing but adorable!" He explained to her.

Silent tears began to trickle down her face until she broke into deep sobs. This man wasn't to blame for having slept with another woman, they weren't together, not even allowed to and while he assumed her baby wasn't his, he would love to raise it.

Encouraged by her behavior he took a step forward to embrace her in a loving hug, his arms surrounded her and stroked her back. Her whole body pressed against him and her face was buried into his shoulder. Jack had placed his chin on top of her head. He felt her bump between them and instantly reached for it. His fingers ran from her back to her front, feeling her firm belly weighing down on his hands.

She looked up to him and took his face between her hands, running her fingers over his stubble. With a broken voice she whispered, "Just for the record, of course this is your baby!", and when she drew him closer he couldn't hold back his tears before she finally kissed him.