PART 14
Sam smiled at the memory of that evening as she brushed her finger over each beloved face. These three men were her life, her breath, and her sanity. She chuckled as she recalled Teal�c�s �non-joke� about his last fishing trip to Jack�s lake. It had left her and Daniel in stitches. Jack had pretended to be offended, but Sam had seen the gleam of mischief in his eye as he�d groused at Teal�c. Janet had called the team and gotten all but Jack�s attention when she�d snapped the picture. Before the flash had cleared her eyes, Jack had asked Sam to go fishing with him. Daniel overheard the invitation and had cracked up again, sending Sam back into a fit of giggles.
Now she sobered. She never had answered Jack on that night, and he hadn�t asked again.
�Are you okay?� came his voice from the doorway.
Sam gasped, and then winced at the stab of pain. How long had he been standing there? She tried to steady her breathing as she looked at Jack. He stood in the doorway, a look of concern on his face and wearing nothing more than a pair of cotton boxers that had probably seen better days. �Man, is he sexy!� came her unbidden thought, �right down to his toes!�
�Wh-what?� she stammered as her eyes roved his nearly naked body. Had he been dressed that way the first time she�d woken up? She couldn�t remember.
�Oh,� she continued, �you heard me scream. I�m sorry I disturbed you again, sir.�
He winced slightly before he straightened and walked toward her.
�Yes, Sam,� he said, emphasizing her name, �I did hear you scream and I was . . . a touch concerned when it stopped short,� he smiled as he took the framed picture from her fingers. She wondered briefly what he thought of the photo when she realized he hadn�t looked at it, but was looking at her for an answer to his implied question.
�Oh,� she said, �Another bad dream. Couldn�t breathe and forgot I have broken ribs. When I woke up and took a breath, my ribs moved. Screaming was the natural reaction.�
She saw him wince in remembered pain.
�I�ve done that before,� he said, smiling slightly, �Don�t do it again, Sam, okay?�
�I�ll try not to, sir,� she said with a smile.
He looked into her eyes at that moment and suddenly couldn�t breathe himself. There was such sadness and pain in those blue depths, but behind all the garbage was something he could only hesitate to name. Something like a memory from her dream, probably . . . �but it had been a bad dream,� he reminded himself. Jack sat on the edge of the bed and looked at her intently.
�Sometimes it helps to talk about it,� he said quietly and then quickly looked away before he continued, �I mean . . . about your dream.�
He looked down at the picture in his hands, unable to meet her gaze. Realizing what was in the picture shocked him. �Where the hell did that come from?� he wondered. He didn�t remember the shot being taken. He was disturbed by the look he saw on his image�s face. He looked . . . well, he looked like he was ready to pounce on the object of his gaze, which was Sam. His desire for her was so evident. Could everyone else see what he was seeing in this one simple shot?
God, was he really that obvious? He thought he�d been pretty circumspect when it came to his feelings about his team members, especially Sam. But this picture was proving to him that he didn�t have as much control on it as he�d thought.
Jack looked up at her to see if what he saw was as obvious to her.
�It�s from Daniel�s birthday party,� she said with a little smile.
She showed no hint of . . . what? He guessed he expected something. Maybe he hoped she returned the feelings he showed in the picture? Maybe he expected her to pity him? He really wasn�t sure. But all he saw was total openness.
�I don�t remember it being taken,� he admitted, then taking in the rest of the photograph, he asked, �Why are you and Daniel laughing?�
�Teal�c was making snide comments about the fish, or lack thereof in your lake at your cabin,� she grinned as she continued in her best �Teal�c voice�, �Indeed, Major Carter, DanielJackson, I still do not understand why a state with so many lakes has so few fish� . . . If it had been from anyone but our favorite Jaffa, it wouldn�t have been half as funny,� she chuckled.
�As it was,� Jack grinned, now remembering the evening�s camaraderie, �I only egged him on by acting peeved. Then I . . . I asked . . .� he trailed off at the remembrance of never having that question answered.
�Asked me to go fishing,� she finished with a slight blush and a smile. Then her face was serious as she said, �Thank you, sir.�
He looked at her in astonishment.
�For what?�
�Being here. Helping me through this . . . being you. You�re the only one who seems to understand that, right now, I don�t want to talk about . . . about . . .�
�About the rape,� he finished for her.
She nodded.