Chapter 3 – Spread
Jack was the first VIP to be beamed up to the Odyssey the next morning. The brief mental pressure from the anxious crew made him wince before he was able to effectively block their thoughts. He greeted Colonel Davidson and allowed himself to be escorted to the conference room.
Before long he was joined by representatives of the IOA, Woolsey in particular, and the SG Alliance countries, each one bombarding him with their separate concerns and schemes, hidden behind a false smile. But Jack was used to the mental assault and played the political game with a finesse that would have astounded Daniel.
Finally, the moment arrived and Colonel Carter briefly explained how the new satellites would be deployed. As the whole group watched, the Odyssey quickly deposited the satellites into their orbits. A few minutes later, the crew was ushering their guests back out and down to Earth.
Jack felt that the whole thing was a bit anticlimactic. But he was honestly just glad to have an excuse to travel to the Odyssey and view Earth from orbit. He never tired of the view. The planet still looked as peaceful and serene as it had from Thor’s view screen.
“Sir?” he heard and felt Carter behind him, her thoughts almost predatory.
That small hint at her mind made him turn and look at her closely. She looked good, well rested. But she seemed reserved and…hesitant? “Carter?” he asked in reply.
She looked at him fiercely, before directing her gaze out the window to Earth, “I…um…I wanted to invite you to dinner,” she started. “We…the team and I…are celebrating tonight. I would like you to join us. Will you?”
Jack was stunned speechless. He didn’t quite know what to make of her offer…her request. But he was afraid to hope. He had burned that bridge too long ago. He wanted to know what her intentions were…why there was that feral look in her eyes…but he didn’t want to be hurt again. He blocked himself from seeing her thoughts. He didn’t want to know. He couldn’t afford to know.
They were friends. Friends could have dinner. It would be good to see Daniel and Teal’c again. It would be good to spend time with Sam again. Just dinner. Just friends. He could do that.
“Sure,” he found himself finally saying. “What time?”
Sam beamed at him, her eyes wide and bright. He felt his breath catch in his throat and told himself to breathe, amazed at the power the woman still held over him. She took a step closer to him and inhaled deeply before stepping back quickly.
“1800. O’Malley’s,” she stated quickly, flushing slightly.
Jack quirked an eyebrow at her, “I thought we were banned?”
Her smile changed into a smirk, “Vala can be quite convincing when she wants to be. The ban was lifted on a probationary basis. So, no bar fights, okay?”
Jack barked out a short laugh, “I think I can handle that. After all, Daniel started the last one.”
“Yeah, he did,” she replied with a smile. She slowly backed out of the room, “I’ll…uh…see you there. Bye.” She fled the room.
Jack watched the empty doorway for a full minute before he was able to return to the view of Earth. He couldn’t stop grinning.
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Sam beamed back down to the SGC grinning. She did it. She got him to agree to come to dinner…with the team. Oh crap! I have to get the team to go to dinner.
She ran to her lab and started calling everyone. Daniel and Vala were more than happy to agree. The fact that Vala was still over at Daniel’s apartment was not lost on Sam. It merely confirmed her suspicions about them. Teal’c wasn’t in his room. She could hunt him down later.
However, Cam was hesitant. He had worked out a second date with Carolyn for tonight and didn’t want to break it off so soon. Sam told him to bring her along and he finally agreed to come.
Three down, one to go. Sam considered where Teal’c would have gone and immediately headed for the gym. She smirked as she watched him spar with three Marines. They were all covered in sweat and sporting small cuts.
“You have all grown slow in my absence,” Teal’c chided them.
They moved as one and tried a combined attack with their staffs. Teal’c easily avoided the first two, but had to move into the third to block a secondary attack. Though the third man scored a hit, the blow was not critical and didn’t end the match. Teal’c moved with a blinding speed and quickly disabled the three men.
He stood over the Marines as they lay panting on the floor, “Better. But you must move faster.”
The Marines only nodded assent and slowly picked themselves up off the floor.
Teal’c turned to Sam, “Will you demonstrate, Colonel Carter?” he asked politely.
Sam felt her adrenaline surge at the thought. “Sure,” she replied.
She picked up a dropped practice staff and tested its balance before squaring off with Teal’c. The Marines quickly scattered to the sides of the mat, curious to see just how she could be faster then them.
Sam felt her blood pounding in her temples as she made her first move, a light feint. Soon, she and Teal’c were exchanging a whirlwind of blows that neither one landed. Her mind blocked out everything but Teal’c; his movement, his scent, the sound of his feet as they hit the mat. When she saw her opening, she took it with a surge of speed that surprised even her.
The blow landed square on the back of his head forcing him to his knees. She stood over him stiff, staff at the ready. But Teal’c acknowledged the blow and his defeat. With eyes cast down, he tilted his head sideways, yielding to her. She accepted and offered him a hand up. Soon they were both smiling.
“Damn, Colonel. I’ve never seen anyone take down Teal’c before,” one of the Marines piped up.
Sam had forgotten them. She turned around and regarded them closely. Their scent wasn’t off. Her gut wasn’t telegraphing distrust. She stared at each of them until they looked down and away uncomfortable with her gaze. She nodded. They would do.
“That’s because you weren’t fast enough,” she replied coolly, handing him his staff. The Marines flushed in embarrassment. Sam turned back to Teal’c, “Dinner tonight at O’Malley’s. 1800. Don’t be late.”
“I will be there,” Teal’c replied as she walked away.
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Sam had arrived at O’Malley’s early that night. She had politely reserved a corner table and nursed a beer until the others arrived. Unsurprisingly, Daniel and Vala arrived together and joined her at the table. Cam and Carolyn arrived next. Sam regarded Carolyn Lam and found that sense of distrust from the day before was missing. Again, she nodded to herself, she would do.
Finally, Jack arrived and Sam was momentarily lost in his scent. But she calmed her nerves and greeted him, “Hey!”
“Hey right back at ya. Where’s Teal’c?” he asked, scanning the table and only seeing the couples and Sam.
“I am here, O’Neill,” Teal’c replied from behind him.
Sam grinned as Jack started and then turned to face the Jaffa and grab him in an affectionate hug.
Soon they were all happily ensconced around the table sharing new and old tales. As the stories started to center around the original SG-1 members, Cam and Carolyn excused themselves to dance. Soon, Daniel and Vala joined them. Eventually, the remaining three just sat back and watched their friends in comfortable silence.
Sam wasn’t sure what she needed to do next. She felt that she was hunting elusive prey. Every attempt that she made to draw out Jack was effectively blocked by a new story or acidic comment. He gave her no opening, no way to address the subject that he considered taboo. But she could smell how much he wanted her. She caught his gaze on her more than once. Didn’t he realize that he was broadcasting his need to everyone? Couldn’t he see that she wanted and needed him just as much in return?
So, as she collected her thoughts, she watched Cam and Carolyn dance. She wanted to be that close, to be able to feel his strong arms around her. She was tired of being the strong one. She was tired of being alone. Sam let out a soft sigh as Cam gave Carolyn a gentle kiss.
“You alright?” Jack asked her.
Sam turned back to him, her eyes full of her need and despair, “Not really, no. I’m going to grab some air.”
She jumped up and worked her way quickly to the patio exit. She took several deep breaths of fresh air. The air chilled her skin and she stared out across the parking lot. The mountain air had the desired effect and she calmed down.
She didn’t want to rush this hunt and she didn’t want to go after different prey. She just needed to be patient. He couldn’t hide his need or desire. He would come eventually. He couldn’t help himself.
Sam turned a feral grin at the night sky and waited for Jack to come to her.
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Jack watched her leave in a rush. He had been blocking as hard as he could all evening. The urge to drop his mental barriers was so strong. He trusted these people, his friends, more than anyone else. But he just couldn’t. He was afraid of what he would see.
Daniel and Vala together hadn’t been too big a surprise. They had been dancing around each other for years. Jack honestly was happy for them. Mitchell and Lam, however, was a complete surprise. He was still trying to work out if Hank knew about the relationship. He doubted that the general even suspected they had feelings for each other.
But his friends were also different. Jack observed an emotional distance that hadn’t been there before. His friends weren’t excluding him, but they didn’t exactly work to include him as well. Jack was worried that he had lost their friendship to time and distance. They didn’t act unfriendly, more unreachable, except for Sam.
On the other hand, Sam had been reaching out to him and he had blocked her every attempt. He had kept that distance even as she tried to breach it. It was automatic, self-defense. He wanted her so much that one step in her direction would be his downfall. One slip and he would be lost. He wouldn’t be able to help himself. So he had barricaded himself in his mind and tried to divert attention to everything but that…them…Sam.
Jack had watched her watching Cam on the dance floor and heard her soft sigh. It was a small lost sound and it pained Jack to think that he just might be the cause of that sigh. When he had asked her if she was alright, he had expected the standard pat answer of ‘I’m fine.’ It had been their standard answer for years. It was expected. ‘Not really, no,’ she had said, and he felt her response like a blow to the stomach.
She was hurting and he was lost. He knew it before he stood up. He knew it as he slowly followed her outside. He knew it as he watched her take in the night air. He couldn’t help himself. He couldn’t stand to see her hurting and not reach out.
She turned and regarded him closely before pulling him into a tight hug. They didn’t need words. They never had. Jack just closed his eyes and relaxed into her arms. He held her close and let himself become lost in her presence.
He didn’t realize that he was going to kiss her until after he moved in to capture her lips. Her hungry response to his kiss left him reeling and gasping for breath. He was sure that he blacked out or lost time, because he finally came back to his senses sitting down on one of the picnic table benches. Sam was straddled across his lap licking and nipping at the side of his neck. That action alone was almost pushing reason away. But he remembered why they weren’t supposed to get lost in each other. He didn’t want to remember, but he did.
“Sam,” Jack gasped out as she nipped at a spot just behind his ear. It almost sounded like a moan. “Oh God, Sam…Sam!” He pushed her back slightly, trying to regain control.
Sam looked at him, her eyes almost dark with passion, and he nearly lost control again. “Sam…we can’t.”
Her eyes narrowed and she tilted her head to consider him. He saw the she knew the reasons why they shouldn’t. He saw her debate the reasons for only a fraction of a second before reaching a conclusion.
Finally, she leaned in, wrapping her arms tightly around his neck. “We can. I need you too much.” She kissed him gently, a light brush of her lips, “You need me. Nothing else matters.” She kissed him again, this time fiercely, as if she were laying claim to him.
Jack let her make her claim and he finally let his mental walls fall. The force of her mind hit him and he was enveloped in love and need. She didn’t think that anyone could match him. She didn’t want anyone but him. She was his, body, mind, and soul. Nothing less would do.
“Come home with me, Jack,” she whispered into his ear.
Jack lost his tenuous grip on his control. Control is so overrated. He surrendered completely to her. “Yes,” he said between kisses, “Yes!” He trusted her completely. He gave himself to her body, mind, and soul.
TBC
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