It had been six months and ten days. Jack was getting antsy. He wasn't sleeping well, he wasn't eating well, and he certainly wasn't playing well with others. He had even managed to get under Teal'c's skin, which was no easy task.
Daniel met Jack as he stepped off the elevator. "Jack, I've been trying to contact you for the last hour."
Jack kept walking. "My cell phone is dead, as will be anyone who stands between me and a cup of coffee," he growled.
"Jack, wait," Daniel said, trying to keep up.
"Not now, Daniel," Jack snapped.
"Jack!" Daniel yelled.
"What?" Jack yelled back.
"We received a message from the Nox."
"Why in the hell didn't you say so?"
Considering the situation, Daniel let the question pass. "The gist of it was that they are requesting your presence at a celebration. That sounds like good news."
Jack bit back a grin.
Jack was met at the gate and led to a small home in the trees not far away. Though morning on Earth, night was falling as they approached. Glowing rush torches surrounded the clearing in front of the small structure. As they approached the dwelling, his escorts fell back and allowed Jack to enter alone.
"Carter?" he called out.
"Back and to your left," Sam called back.
Jack didn't know what he expected, but this wasn't it. He stood and stared for a moment until Samantha noticed him.
"Hi," Sam said cheerfully.
"Hi? Aren't you supposed to be a big exhausted mess right now?" he asked with all his usual tact.
"No," Sam laughed, as she reached up to put in her earrings. "I'm supposed to be celebrating. Didn't you hear?"
"Yeah. I might have heard something like that. You, uh, look..."
"What?" Carter asked, somewhat sensitively. She smoothed the seams of her blue sundress.
"Incredible." O'Neill was having a difficult time taking his eyes off Sam. Her hair had grown longer and rested against her exposed shoulders. Her figure was no worse for having fuller curves. Her pale skin seemed to glow set against her deep blue dress.
Sam blushed at the compliment. "I'm almost ready," she said, looking away.
"Aren't we missing something? More specifically, someone?"
Sam stepped back and Jack noticed for the first time the woven basket behind her. She reached down and lifted the swaddled child into her arms. O'Neill came to her side and Sam gently handed the infant to him. "Emily," she told him with a smile.
Jack barely let go of the child all evening. Sam pried them apart briefly, insisting Jack eat, but it wasn't long before he reclaimed his daughter. He could barely contain his delight when the gathering came to an end and they could finally be alone.
"So what was it like?" Jack asked.
"What? You mean labor? I don't know exactly," Sam said. "At the first sign of contractions, they put me out. I think. I'm not quite sure..."
"That's probably a really good thing," Jack suggested.
"Yes," Sam laughed, "I'm sure it is."
The baby was sleeping soundly. "We should probably lay her down now," Jack said. They walked inside and Jack gently set the child in the basket. He stood over her, watching her sleep peacefully. "She's beautiful."
"The Asgard are coming tomorrow," Sam said wistfully. She sat down on the Nox equivalent of a bed, hugging her knees to her chest. This was getting to her. Under different circumstances, she could imagine nothing happier than to be here, alone with Jack and their child. But now every second made her more aware of how soon it would end, and how close she was to losing her carefully created distance.
Jack remained where he was, his gaze locked on Emily. "Carter, I want you to understand something. When I said she was coming home in five years, I was making no assumptions. I don't want you to feel... You don't owe me anything, and I will always do what is best for her. I would never fight you."
Carter's careful reserve was obliterated. "Jack." The tone of her voice drew his gaze to her face. "Be honest with me."
Sam paused, as O'Neill moved to her side. She was frightened of both the question and the answer. Finally she found the courage to ask, "Have your feelings for me changed?"
Jack looked away as he replied, "No. If anything, they're stronger. If that's even possible."
Sam's eyes closed and she breathed deeply in relief. "Then make assumptions. No," she corrected, looking at O'Neill, "make plans."
Later, neither of them could have said how it happened, who began. They only knew they found themselves trying to assuage the longings of many years with a deep and impassioned kiss. At last, breathlessness tore them from one another.
Sam was reeling from the profound effects of Jack's mouth on hers. All she could manage to say was an awestruck "Wow."
"You think?" Jack teased, breathing raggedly.
"Five years, huh?" Sam asked.
"Maybe sooner," Jack added quickly.
They both smiled in silence for a few moments, then Jack rose uncomfortably. "I had better go," he said, "I'd really better go. Better...go." He glanced at the baby, and became momentarily sidetracked. "She's awake," he said and reached down to pick her up.
"The camera!" Sam opened the box and retrieved it. Jack submitted with relative passivity to having his picture taken, only complaining about the flash. Sam poked fun at him a bit, so he insisted she see for herself what it was like to be blind. He snapped four pictures, as quickly as the camera allowed, but couldn't even get Sam to admit to seeing spots.
"I wish I'd remembered this earlier," Sam mused. "We could have gotten one with both of us."
''Come here," Jack said, pulling Sam close. Stretching out his arm and holding the camera awkwardly, he snapped two pictures. He set the camera down, sorted all the photos and stuffed several in his pocket.
"I guess I'll see you back home," Sam said, trying to maintain a smile.
Jack leaned down and kissed the child nestled in Sam's arms. "Tell Thor two things. Emily needs to know that her parents love her," he said. Leaning in to whisper in Sam's ear, he added, "And tell him this offer is limit one per customer. If we have more, we're keeping them."