Sam felt the warmth of the morning sunlight on her face as she slowly emerged from her dreamless, contented sleep. She felt gloweringly happy as she sensed the strong yet gentle embrace of the man still slumbering beside her. Jack's breathing was slow and steady, rhythmically propelling his body up and down. Sam looked up into his face and saw an expression she had rarely seen before - his forehead was less crinkled with worry, the lines less finely etched and the mask of slumber had the effect of temporarily stripping the pain and stress from his well-defined features, the combination of which made him appear calm and at peace. Sam realised that *this* is what he would have looked like without all the pain and sorrow he had experienced in his life - a younger, brighter, more enthusiastic version of him. But then she reflected that all the other possible permutations of him were not the same as this Jack ... *her* Jack.

Sam smiled more deeply this time, her dimples appearing. She really liked the thought of her Jack.

Her quiet contemplation of him was interrupted by its subject. The Colonel stirred, his arms tightening around Sam before loosening again as he slowly opened his eyes. Her round blue eyes met his half-opened hazel ones as they took a moment to simply absorb the presence of each other.

"Morning Major." He said teasingly as he broke into an unrestrained smile. His brown eyes danced in the morning light, and Sam had never seen him looking so alive and happy. Was this all due to her?

"Morning ... Colonel." Sam wrapped her arms around his body and pressed herself tighter against him. She was happy, although still a little unnerved that her commanding officer was rather unplatonically sharing the same bed as her. Being with him was however rapidly becoming more comfortably by the minute, and Sam knew that in another couple of hours she wouldn't be able to imagine living without him. She smiled at the thought.

She had smiled a lot that day.

"How did you sleep?" Sam asked, tilting her head up towards him as she spoke.

His smile deepened and his eyes looked down at her, conveying an honest and heartfelt appreciation. "The best I've had in a long time." He replied quietly.

Sam knew what he had meant by that. He had told her some time ago that he had trouble sleeping ever since his son had died. Haunted by nightmares and visions of a son blaming him for his carelessness.

They remained quiet at that, each deeply lost in their own reflections. Sam knew Jack well and they were close, but sometimes she had no idea what he was thinking. That unsettled her a little; she was the type of person who needed to see what kind of ground she was standing on.

After an hour spent laying on the bed wrapped in each other's arms, Sam got up and headed for the bathroom. Jack, with a playfully injured look on his face, said, "Hey Sam, where're you going? I haven't finished with you!"

Sam poked her head back into the room, making herself just visible. She had already undressed and there was nothing but a towel around her body.

"I'm just going to take a shower, then we can decide what we want to do today ... unless of course, you want to watch me study the naquadah generator we got from Orban?"

Jack needed an extra moment to recover from the sight of a near-naked Sam in such close proximity to him. His jaw was till hanging slightly open.

"No, no ... I think we'll go with the first plan. I think I'd like that a little more than studying that generator thing anyway." Sam threw him a smile as she headed back for the bathroom.

"Hey Sam ... need any help in there?" Jack was enjoying being so relaxed with her.

"Uh ... no, I think I can manage okay. It's not like I don't do this everyday." Jack could hear her golden smile resonating in her voice.

"Yeah ... can't blame a guy for trying!." He chuckled a little at the thought. This felt so good. Being relaxed, being free from worry, if just for a moment or two ... and mostly, being with Sam.

Well, it wasn't like he hadn't spent time with her before, what with going on so many missions together and having some damn close shaves during that time. But ... this was different ... completely, totally different.

Jack lay flat on his back staring at the ceiling as thoughts of Charlie crept into his consciousness. For the first time, thinking about him here, the memories didn't seem as painfully searing, nor laced with as much anger and regret. He could now remember the good times and smile, remembering what a good kid his son had been. The good memories were bright and golden as his son was golden, and although he would never forgive himself for what happened to Charlie, the acidic self-loathing that accompanied it seemed to be diminishing gradually with each passing day. Thinking about him still brought up bittersweet sensations, but at least this newer feeling didn't seem as self-destructive. His tortured heart would never let him forgive ... but being with Sam, even for this short a time, had eased his heartache just a little.

His thoughts were interrupted by the melodic chime of the doorbell. Jack lay completely still as indecision racked his body. He had no idea what to do. He could a) answer the door and surprise the hell out of whoever was on the other side, or b) not answer it and hope that it wasn't an emergency summons from the SGC. He hadn't discussed with Sam the finer details of their ... *whatever* they had here. She could get mad if he took it upon himself to make decisions that would impact on both of them without telling her. Women often did things like that.

Jack sighed. "Oh what the hell." He said aloud and answered the door.

Dr. Daniel Jackson was speechless for longer than a moment as he digested the sight of a shirtless Colonel Jack O'Neill answering Major Samantha Carter's door. The incredulous expression in Daniel's eyes spoke volumes for his astonishment.

"*Jack* ... what are you doing here?" Daniel's earnest puppy dog eyes squinted inquiringly.

"Uh ... *well* ..." Jack struggled for composure which wasn't helped by the slow blush that was stealing over his face. He hadn't been prepared to see a member from his own team. Obviously Sam and Daniel were much closer than he'd thought.

Daniel's mind clicked. "*Oh* ... I see." He tried unsuccessfully to smother a smile as he looked at Jack. Daniel was fighting a losing battle as Jack vainly struggled for some sense of dignity.

"Well, it's not like *that* ... You'd better come in. She's in the shower - she'll be out in a minute." Daniel stepped into the house with only a hint of a smile still visible on his face.

"Hey Danny? Would it be okay to keep all of this our little secret? Not including Teal'c, of course. It's just that ... I don't want Hammond and the rest of the base finding out until we've figured out what we have here." Jack looked like he was going for root canal work the way he was looking towards the younger man. "I mean," he scrowled, crinkling his face in concern, "it's not like I've even figured out what kind of 'thing' Sam and I have here. It's all kinda new to me." He left the rest unsaid.

"Oh I know." Daniel's features brightened, though he heroically still fought to keep a wide smile from spreading across his face. He tried to look more like his usual academic self.

Jack did a double take. "You *know*?" Evidently Sam and Daniel were *much* closer than he had thought.

"Oh ..." Daniel caught his meaning and grinned. "Sam called me last night. She had a lot of trouble sleeping and wanted someone to talk to." He paused. "Actually ... we talked mostly about you." He raised his eyebrows for emphasis.

"What did you say to her?" O'Neill's combat-honed curiosity got the better of him, although he half-dreaded to hear what advice sensible Daniel would dispense to Sam about getting together with a loser like him.

"Oh, I told her she needed to relax, drink some warm milk and take a hot bath. She was so hyped up she couldn't even talk properly."

"Really?" Jack said with a tiny smile. "That's awfully flattering."

"Not really. It was mainly the twin thing." Daniel covered his smile by turning around and heading towards Sam's kitchen. He was a little tempted to see what must be an absolutely priceless expression on Jack's face though. It wasn't often that he goaded Jack with any measure of success.

Daniel began rummaging through the cupboards in the kitchen, familiarly gathering the essential ingredients that constituted his life force - caffeine. Jack heard the sound of the bathroom door opening and quickly made his way in that direction.

Sam was in the middle of getting dressed, her shapely yet athletically toned legs already encased in a pair of comfortably fitting jeans.

"Hey." Sam started as Jack entered the room, closing the door behind him. "Nice." He grinned appreciatively.

"Uh, Colonel - Jack -" she automatically corrected herself, "I know things are a *little* different between us right now, but it's always a good idea to *knock* before you come in." She berated him good naturedly, not minding at the already more familiar way in which they were interacting with each other. Jack wrapped his arms around her waist and dipped his head into the curve of her neck, relishing her scent that brought a riot to his senses. God, she must have used at least a dozen different things in the shower - she smelt as sweet as the wild roses in his garden yet refreshingly alluring. He felt her hands rest briefly on his before patting it playfully away.

"You know Jack, if we want to get anything done today we have to start getting *dressed*." Jack released his hold reluctantly, giving her a puppy dog expression that Sam found so endearingly cute that she almost relented and dragged him back into bed with her. But luckily common sense prevailed and she continued to get dressed, putting on a black, three quarter sleeve length top that clung comfortably to her lithe frame. Jack sighed in obvious appreciation.

"Yeah well, we don't *really* have to go out today ... we could just order in pizza, watch some movies ..." he paused as he read the expression on her face. "... or not." Sam turned around to face him as he continued. "Anyway, we might have sort of a problem here." She tensed immediately, her mind beginning to race with a myriad of possibilities, the most obvious one being that he might already have regretted crossing that invisible boundary between them.

She was put at ease by his next words. "Daniel's here."

"Daniel? Here?" Sam quickly focused on the potential problem that Jack had been alluding to. Things had happened with Jack so fast that she felt sure that neither of them had the opportunity to properly process just what they had gotten themselves into, let alone how, or if, they were going to reveal it to anyone. After all, what with them going so completely in the face of Air Force regulations prohibiting fraternisation between officers, they now had to be extra careful at portraying and maintaining a completely professional working relationship around the SGC. And although Daniel was one of her best friends, he also worked with them around the base, and if any one of them let something slip ... things could get very complicated.

Very, very complicated.

"So ... he's here." Jack nodded in affirmation. "Does he know ... about us?" Sam felt a bit of trepidation, not at the thought of Daniel knowing about 'them', but rather, at the thought of there being a 'them' to talk about. Her and Jack. It was the first time either of them had really said it aloud. Before last night, they had been Major Carter and Colonel O'Neill, separate - mutually attracted, but separate entities. Now, they were Sam and Jack, a little two person unit all on their own, ionically bonded as polar opposites attracted, mutually involved ... and suddenly there was a 'them'. What were they exactly? Were they a couple? Were they dating? Having a relationship? ? what?

Jack saw the slight frown on Sam's face and guessed a little at what was transpiring in her mind.

"Well, I think he sort of put it together. Pretty quick in fact ... you know our space monkey." He turned around briefly and put his hands on her hips. "I kinda ... asked him to keep it quiet for a while, while we ... work out what we have here." He gestured between the two of them.

Sam smiled in relief. "You read my mind Sir." She had absently slipped into her old habit, returning to the more familiar form of military address as Jack stepped forward to envelope her in a deep kiss.

"Mmmmm ..." Sam leaned backwards away from his hold, savouring the wonderfully joyous sensation that had been transferred from his lips. "Much as I *love* doing this ..." He grinned as he leaned in further to deliver another kiss, his hands playfully running over her hips again before clasping at her back, locking her into his arms, " ... I believe Daniel is waiting outside ...?"

"Let him wait. He's happy as long as he's got his coffee." Jack said huskily, burrowing deeper into the crook of her neck and inhaling her sweetness. He could *definitely* get use to this.

Hell, he already was used to it. Being like this with Sam, bestowing kisses and hugs randomly, having her arms around him, her hands running through his hair ... it felt like the most natural thing in the world. If only he'd known what *this* felt like ... this heaven on earth, where roses smelt oh-so-sweet and Sam was his beautiful, golden-haired angel ...

Damn those regs for this not happening sooner!

Sam laughed aloud in pleasure. "Yeah, but Jack ... I think we really *should* go out ..." Her crystal blue eyes connected with his. He allowed her gentle hands to slowly entwine themselves with his and lead him towards the waiting Daniel.

Daniel awoke from his contemplation of the open National Geographic in front of him, a grin splitting his face from side to side. He took a sip of his coffee as he said, "Hi Sam. Sorry if I woke you up!" He was looking unusually exuberant, his child-like blue eyes sparkling with mirth behind his glasses.

"No, it's okay Daniel, I was already awake ... having a shower."

"Oh yeah, Jack told me." At this his alert eyes darted down to glimpse their entwined hands, his grin growing impossibly wider.

"Yeah, anyway, I was on my way to see Catherine to talk about our latest finds and thought I'd stop by and check out how you were doing ..." he swivelled around to look at Jack, who was busying himself in the kitchen preparing something that faintly resembled breakfast, and turned back toward Sam again. "... but I can see that you're doing just fine..."

Sam grinned somewhat self-consciously as Jack made a face behind Daniel's back. "Thanks Daniel...." She paused as he took another sip of coffee.

"You know, I'm really happy for you guys. You deserve it." His eyes glinted with heartfelt warmth and friendship. Sam in reply conveyed her gratitude through her smile, before her eyes locked with Jack's over Daniel's head. The Colonel had momentarily paused in his food preparations and gave her a soft smile, strangely devoid of his usual inhibitions. It was a smile full of love and promise.

Daniel looked down and stared absent-mindedly at the swirling pool of black liquid in front of him. "You should live each day to the fullest. After all, you never know when happiness could be taken away." He appeared slightly downcast and Sam knew just what his mind was dwelling upon. His quest to find Sha're was now over three years old, and she knew there had been times during that when hope and despair had alternately driven him close to the edge. Sam's heart was once again touched by what must be perpetual anguish for her friend and she covered his hand in sympathy. Daniel looked up and seemed revived by it, giving her a resolute squeeze back. When they were off base he and Sam talked a lot, particularly on the phone, and he had confided to her countless times of his frustration at not being able to put his arms around his wife, talk to her as he had done on Abydos, or have her laugh at him while he was trying to do some simple chore. He smiled to let Sam know that it was okay.

Sam, struck forcibly by her friend's misfortune, realised suddenly just how lucky she was in finally being able to spend time with Jack in the way she wanted to. To have someone there that you could talk to, or to wrap your arms around, feel happy and warm and safe. She vowed silently to herself that she would never let herself forget just lucky she was.

Her silent sympathy was interrupted by Jack's call that breakfast was ready. Balancing three plates on his arm, he rounded the corner of the bench top and proceeded to place the loaded plates in front of Sam and Daniel. Sam's stomach rumbled in pleasure as she sniffed the surprisingly delicious aroma of the pancakes. She hadn't known that she was so hungry. And she also hadn't known that Jack could actually cook something edible.

"Eat up kids. This is Uncle Jack's specialty - butter and chocolate sauce on the way." He scooted around to the kitchen and reappeared with an armful of bottles. "Chocolate, strawberry, caramel ... oh yeah, and of course, ice-cream."

"Ice-cream?" Sam crinkled her nose in mock disgust. Ice-cream for breakfast? He's got to be kidding!

"I didn't know you could cook Jack." Daniel sounded more than mildly surprised. But then he had been surprised so many times that morning that he was probably becoming immune to the shock.

"Sure I can. I just never let you kids know." The Colonel plonked himself down at the table and began digging into the mountainous pile of pancakes in front of him. Sam had been used to seeing her brother eat copius amounts of food during his teenage years, but even she was shocked at the Colonel's appetite. How in the world could he eat that much?

"I seem to remember a time when you cooked that melted ice for us and you said you couldn't cook." Sam reminded him slyly, hardly believing that she could now laugh at the time when they'd been stuck in the middle of an ice crevasse, not knowing they were actually on Earth. "Now I know you weren't telling the truth ... "

"Hey ... I was injured remember?" Jack looked up at her.

Daniel looked up momentarily from his semi-intense contemplation of his pancakes, now generously heaped with vanilla ice-cream and chocolate sauce. "Soon you'll be in an apron Jack, cooking Sam's breakfast for her everyday!" Jack threw him a look. Silence descended as all three ate.

"You know, I used to love this when I was a kid ... my parents were always really busy, but once in a while they'd actually take a break and we'd all go and eat together ..."

Sam looked over at Jack whose face had suddenly sobered. "Charlie and I used to cook these for Sarah every Sunday morning ..." he said quietly. Sam's eyes widened and she pressed her hand into the outstretched ones of Jack. "I stopped after ... never felt like making them ... until today." He looked back at Sam and she was glad to see the itching pain and torment that used to be in his eyes whenever he mentioned Charlie had faded ever so slightly. Their gazes locked as Sam tried to convey that she would always be there for him whenever he needed her. No ifs. No buts. Always.

Jack squeezed her hand reassuringly and resumed eating while Daniel shuffled uncomfortably. It was painfully obvious to him how easily Sam and Jack had readjusted their perspectives on each other, and it was also equally as obvious that, for him at least, getting used to this new development would take some time. Although he was really, really happy for them, he was concerned about how it could affect the group dynamics of the whole team. Would he and Teal'c feel more like outsiders or intruders after this? He knew both Sam and Jack pretty well; Daniel felt sure that they would remain professional and military to the core around the base and wouldn't ever let their relationship get in their way on their missions.

"Oh guys ... I forgot to tell you before. I rang Teal'c when you guys were in ... the bedroom ... I told him to meet me here, since Catherine wanted to see him too. I hope you guys don't mind ..."

Sam trained sparkling blue eyes onto Daniel. "No, that's fine. Besides, I don't think Teal'c's ever had any of Jack's special pancakes before." Dimples appeared as her face creased into a mischievous smile.

Jack pretended to take mild offence. "Hey, hey! They are special ... you just don't want to admit it! Ask Danny ... he likes them!"

"What? Uh ... they're actually nice ... maybe a little ... sweet." Daniel enunciated carefully.

The sound of the doorbell eliminated the need for Daniel to comment further. Sam got up and went to answer it, returning with a puzzled Jaffa in tow.

"Good morning Major Carter, Daniel Jackson, Colonel O'Neill." He surveyed the table curiously and noted the assortment of condiments strewn over it. His eyebrow quirked upwards questioningly. "What manner of dish is this? I am unaccustomed with the uses of some of these items."

Sam quickly fished out another plate from the kitchen while Daniel began to explain the theory behind heaping ice-cream and a sauce of preference over pancakes. Teal'c still seemed a little confused when she returned.

"I do not understand. Why do you not put all these ingredients inside the cake when it is made? It would save you the trouble of all this assembly."

Jack licked the last of the ice-cream from his fork. "It's *pan*cake Teal'c, not cake." He sat back in his chair with a satisfied air. "Because, that'd take all the fun out of eating it." Sam had also finished with her portion and had risen to get herself a cup of coffee.

"Hey, while you're at it, could you also get me a cup of coffee ... *honey*?" He added almost as an afterthought, winking at the others seated at the table. Daniel rolled his eyes at Jack's effort at trying to goad Sam while Teal'c raised one eyebrow in question.

"Why is Colonel O'Neill calling Major Carter by an item of food?"

Daniel whispered, "I'll explain it later."

Sam returned with two mugs and a pot of freshly brewed coffee and set it down onto the table.

"Make it yourself ... *sweetheart*." Her voice dripped sarcastically although her eyes were alight.

"Thanks ... *darling*." Jack took the proffered mug and filled his with hot black steaming liquid.

"You're welcome ... *darling*." Their eyes locked and they burst out laughing, puzzling Daniel and Teal'c in the process.

The rest of the morning was spent jovially, with Daniel delivering several customary monologues concerning his latest theories about ancient civilisations, Sam and Daniel discussing points of concern over their most recent missions, with Jack and Teal'c interjecting occasionally. When the coffee had grown cold and all the dishes were neatly packed away back into Sam's kitchen cupboards, Daniel and Teal'c rose to leave.

"Anyway, I think we'd better get going. I told Catherine we'd get there around lunchtime.' Daniel and Teal'c bade their farewells and all of a sudden, Sam and Jack were left staring comfortably at each other, alone once more.

They had somehow implicitly decided that they wanted to spend their down time as far away from the SGC as possible, figuratively speaking. So they did what 'normal' couples did - saw a movie, had some ice-cream ("You're going to make me fat Jack!" - "Yeah, like that's gonna happen."), walked around in a nearby park, with the sun streaming gloriously down and a cool spring breeze at their backs, watching as other people went about their lives. Sam's heart had fluttered irrationally and committed cardiac somersaults when Jack had unthinkingly took her hand in his as he was telling her about his passion for astronomy.

They held hands for the rest of the day.

All in all it had been a 'magical' day. A day in which, retrospectively speaking, stood out bright and golden against the grey monotony of reality, a day painted on empty canvas with the vivid stroke of life. It had been perfect, spent in discovering more about the man walking beside her. Her friend, her commanding officer ... but most importantly, the man she had come to care about. She realised that this caring for him, that had been there for a while ... it had only been the last couple of hours that she had thrown caution to the winds and embraced the sensation, and it had come flooding out, like a dam being breached. She knew that there would be tomorrow ... and the day after that ... and the day after *that* when they would have to deal more realistically with their emotions. But not now. Not today.

Today had been transformed into a dream, there was freedom, smiles, wildflowers and discovery. Discovering and knowing more about Jack that she had ever known or suspected before. Discovering depths of emotion, feelings, natures. As they collapsed exhausted onto her bed that night, Sam thought that today could be one of the happiest days of her life.

Jack shifted in his sleep, unconsciously wrapping his arms around her before emitting a sigh of satisfaction. Sam smiled.

No, she had to change that. Today was the happiest day of her life.